Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Autoshade~commonswiki assumed (based on copyright claims). · CC BY-SA 3.0Living in Altoona, WI: what to set up and who to call
Altoona Waterworks reported one health-based violation to EPA in the last five years: a lead and copper treatment requirement (Lead and Copper Rule Revisions), beginning Oct 2024. Voting is local here: the City of Altoona Clerk registers voters and runs elections, not the county.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Altoona, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Altoona.
Power comes from Xcel Energy
Xcel Energy (Northern States Power Co. (Wisconsin)), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Altoona. Its homes paid an average of 15.6¢ per kWh in 2025, about $113 a month (its average across Wisconsin).
Start or move service: xcelenergy.com · (800) 895-2999
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Altoona Waterworks
Altoona Waterworks supplies Altoona: about 91% of residents live in its service area. Eau Claire Waterworks serves another 5%. About 6% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws ground water and serves 9,627 people in all.
1 health-based violation reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026: a lead and copper treatment requirement (Lead and Copper Rule Revisions), beginning Oct 2024. 80% of the 5,012 systems serving 3,301–10,000 people had none.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan–Jun 2025, was 1.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 1.5 ppb. That’s lower than 57% of similar systems’ latest results.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0 (EPA’s estimate). Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. WI6180280.
5 home internet providers serve Altoona
99% of 2,912 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 90% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spectrum | Cable, Fiber | 95% | 1,000/35 |
| TDS Telecom | Fiber | 88% | 8,000/8,000 |
| AT&T | Fixed wireless, DSL | 61% | 25/3 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 83% | 300/20 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 77% | 100/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Trash and recycling in Altoona
Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Altoona, from the town’s own site.
Green Waste Disposal + Metal Recycling Facility
800 block of Garfield Avenue (north side of the road)
- Mon10 am–2 pm, 12:30 pm–3 pm
- Wed10 am–2 pm, 12:30 pm–3 pm
- Sat10 am–2 pm, 12:30 pm–3 pm
Green Waste Disposal + Metal Recycling Facility
800 block of Garfield Avenue (north side of the road), Altoona, WI
From altoonawi.gov, the town’s official site, checked Oct 21, 2026. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Most of Altoona (95%) is in Altoona School District; parts are in Fall Creek School District (3%) and Eau Claire Area School District (3%).
B+School gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Apr 2026; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Altoona is in ZIP code 54720
ZIP codes where Altoona residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Altoona | ZIP’s residents in Altoona |
|---|---|---|---|
| 54720 | Altoona, WI | 99% | 96% |
A few homes fall in 54701.
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Altoona
Who supplies Altoona’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Altoona Waterworks (EPA ID WI6180280). It reported 1 health-based violation to EPA in the five years to October 2026: a lead and copper treatment requirement (Lead and Copper Rule Revisions). 80% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 1.0 ppb (Jan–Jun 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Altoona?
Xcel Energy (Northern States Power Co. (Wisconsin)), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 15.6¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Altoona?
Spectrum, TDS Telecom, AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Altoona?
54720. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Altoona in?
Altoona School District. Parts of the city are in Fall Creek School District and Eau Claire Area School District.
How do I register to vote in Altoona?
In Wisconsin you can register online until 20 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 20 days before). Elections here are run by the City of Altoona Clerk. Check your registration at myvote.wi.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: Altoona’s own website (altoonawi.gov), read Oct 21, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.