area_context v2 + Maps place verification (server-26#36, #37)

#36 — the correction pass shipped in 58efdbd was right, its reference-data
shape was not. One shape now, at both scopes, every field nullable:

  area_context: { municipality?, county?, state?,
                  center?, radius_km?, resolved_from?, resolved_at?,
                  local_knowledge?: [{term, meaning}] }

`state` closes the ambiguity that made "Ossining" a national guess.
`local_knowledge` replaces roads[]/landmarks[], which could not hold
intersections, schools or nicknames and carried no meanings — `11-X-ray` is
useless alone, `11-X-ray — MTA PD patrol unit` is what a corrector can act on.
Pre-#36 roads[]/landmarks[] are read forward as bare terms so nothing an
operator already entered is lost.

Nullability is the mechanism: which scope gets filled is the operator's
declaration of how homogeneous the system is. One town — fill it once at system
level. Statewide — leave it blank and fill each talkgroup.

The backend owns the derived anchor. PUT /systems/{id} merges config.talkgroups[]
against what is stored instead of writing the client's blob verbatim, which
would have erased the anchor and the pending queue — the same defect as the
ten_codes wipe.

#37 — Maps as a verifier, not as prompt stuffing. The corrector emits its
location nouns; each is geocoded against the talkgroup's anchor, and on a miss
we look for a sound-alike that does resolve there, correct to it, and propose
{term, meaning} to that talkgroup. Cost scales with location nouns, not calls.

No anchor means SKIP. An area too wide to discriminate stores no anchor at all,
because a statewide radius would confirm anything inside it — verification that
passes everything is worse than none, since it reads as a check in the data.

Also re-anchors _geocode_location, which rejected results >40km from the NODE
(server-26#6). An antenna is not a jurisdiction; distance-from-node was always
a stand-in for the anchor and is now only the fallback.

The induction loop proposes at talkgroup level and never promotes. Blast
radius: a wrong term on a channel misleads that channel, the same term
system-wide misleads one 400km away on a statewide system.

38 new tests; 240 pass. Frontend typechecks clean.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>

drb-c2-core/app/config.py

@@ -57,6 +57,19 @@ class Settings(BaseSettings):
     # a property of the audio, and discarding on the first bad roll threw away a
     # recoverable transcript.
     stt_retry_on_degenerate: bool = True
+    # Place verification (server-26#37). Checks the corrector's location nouns
+    # against the talkgroup's own anchor instead of stuffing every road in town
+    # into the prompt, so cost scales with location nouns rather than call volume.
+    place_verification_enabled: bool = True
+    place_verify_max_per_call: int = 3
+    # How close a candidate has to sound before it may rewrite a transcript.
+    # Below this, Places Text Search will confidently hand back the nearest
+    # business for any garbage string.
+    place_soundalike_min_ratio: float = 0.6
+    # An anchor wider than this is not stored at all. A statewide radius would
+    # confirm any location inside it, so the check would rubber-stamp everything
+    # while appearing to work — absent anchor means SKIP, never "accept anything".
+    area_anchor_max_radius_km: float = 60.0
     summary_interval_minutes: int = 2          # how often the summary loop runs
     correlation_window_hours: int = 2          # slow/location path: max hours since last call
     embedding_similarity_threshold: float = 0.93  # slow-path: requires location corroboration

drb-c2-core/app/internal/area_context.py

@@ -0,0 +1,544 @@
+"""
+Area context — the ground truth an operator sets about where a channel operates.
+
+One shape, used at two scopes (server-26#36):
+
+    area_context: {
+      municipality?, county?, state?,
+      center?, radius_km?, resolved_from?, resolved_at?,   # backend-written
+      local_knowledge?: [ { term, meaning } ]
+    }
+
+WHY EVERY FIELD IS NULLABLE. The system level is only meaningful when it is true
+of *every* talkgroup on that system. White Plains PD — it is, so an operator
+fills it once and every talkgroup inherits. A statewide Colorado system — it is
+not, so they leave it null and fill each talkgroup. Which level someone fills IS
+their declaration of how homogeneous the system is, which is what lets one
+schema serve both without a `system_type` flag to get out of sync.
+
+WHY `local_knowledge` REPLACED `roads[]`/`landmarks[]`. Radio traffic references
+intersections, schools, housing developments, rail stations and nicknames ("the
+flats"), none of which fit two lists. And a bare term is half the information:
+`11-X-ray` tells a corrector nothing, `11-X-ray — MTA PD patrol unit` is what
+lets it recognise the sound.
+
+WHY THE ANCHOR CAN BE ABSENT ON PURPOSE. `center`/`radius_km` exist so a
+geocoded place name can be sanity-checked against the area the channel actually
+covers (server-26#37). If municipality/county/state only resolve to something as
+wide as a state, that check would confirm anything inside it while appearing to
+work — worse than useless. So an anchor wider than
+`settings.area_anchor_max_radius_km` is not written at all, and an absent anchor
+means SKIP THE CHECK, never "accept anything".
+
+THE CLIENT DOES NOT WRITE THE DERIVED FIELDS. `center`, `radius_km`,
+`resolved_from` and `resolved_at` are computed here and merged in by the server.
+Taking them from the request body is the same defect as the `ten_codes` wipe
+fixed in 58efdbd: the frontend does not decide what is in a system document.
+"""
+
+import asyncio
+import math
+from datetime import datetime, timezone
+from typing import Any, Optional
+
+from app.config import settings
+from app.internal.logger import logger
+
+# Fields an operator sets. Anything else in an incoming body is dropped.
+CLIENT_FIELDS = ("municipality", "county", "state", "local_knowledge")
+# Fields this module owns. Carried forward from the stored document on every
+# write, never read from the request.
+SERVER_FIELDS = ("center", "radius_km", "resolved_from", "resolved_at")
+# The three that identify a place, in the order they are geocoded.
+PLACE_FIELDS = ("municipality", "county", "state")
+
+_anchor_cache: dict[str, Optional[dict]] = {}
+
+
+def geo_dist_km(lat1: float, lon1: float, lat2: float, lon2: float) -> float:
+    """Haversine distance in km between two lat/lon points."""
+    R = 6371.0
+    dlat = math.radians(lat2 - lat1)
+    dlon = math.radians(lon2 - lon1)
+    a = (
+        math.sin(dlat / 2) ** 2
+        + math.cos(math.radians(lat1)) * math.cos(math.radians(lat2)) * math.sin(dlon / 2) ** 2
+    )
+    return R * 2 * math.asin(math.sqrt(a))
+
+
+# -- Normalisation -------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def normalize_local_knowledge(raw: Any) -> list[dict]:
+    """
+    Coerce whatever arrived into [{term, meaning}], dropping junk.
+
+    Accepts a bare string list too — that is what `roads[]`/`landmarks[]` and the
+    old flat `vocabulary` look like, and a term with no meaning is still worth
+    having in the reference list.
+    """
+    if not isinstance(raw, list):
+        return []
+    out: list[dict] = []
+    seen: set[str] = set()
+    for item in raw:
+        if isinstance(item, str):
+            term, meaning = item.strip(), None
+        elif isinstance(item, dict):
+            term = str(item.get("term") or "").strip()
+            meaning = str(item.get("meaning") or "").strip() or None
+        else:
+            continue
+        key = term.lower()
+        if not term or key in seen:
+            continue
+        seen.add(key)
+        out.append({"term": term, "meaning": meaning} if meaning else {"term": term})
+    return out
+
+
+def knowledge_of(area: Optional[dict]) -> list[dict]:
+    """
+    This scope's local knowledge, folding the pre-#36 shape forward.
+
+    `roads[]` and `landmarks[]` were the original fields and real systems still
+    have them stored. Reading them as bare terms means the corrector keeps the
+    ground truth an operator already entered instead of silently losing it the
+    day this shipped; they disappear from the document the next time that scope
+    is saved.
+    """
+    area = area or {}
+    legacy = list(area.get("roads") or []) + list(area.get("landmarks") or [])
+    return normalize_local_knowledge(list(area.get("local_knowledge") or []) + legacy)
+
+
+def normalize(raw: Any) -> dict:
+    """Client-supplied area_context -> the stored shape, server fields excluded."""
+    if not isinstance(raw, dict):
+        return {}
+    out: dict[str, Any] = {}
+    for field in PLACE_FIELDS:
+        value = raw.get(field)
+        if isinstance(value, str) and value.strip():
+            out[field] = value.strip()
+    knowledge = knowledge_of(raw)
+    if knowledge:
+        out["local_knowledge"] = knowledge
+    return out
+
+
+def merge_server_fields(incoming: dict, existing: Optional[dict]) -> dict:
+    """Carry the backend-owned anchor forward across a client write."""
+    out = dict(incoming)
+    for field in SERVER_FIELDS:
+        if existing and existing.get(field) is not None:
+            out[field] = existing[field]
+    return out
+
+
+def merge_config(incoming: Any, existing: Optional[dict]) -> Any:
+    """
+    Reconcile a client-sent config blob with what the server already owns.
+
+    The systems form sends `config.talkgroups[]` in full, so writing it verbatim
+    destroys everything the backend put there — the resolved anchor and the
+    pending term queue. That is the same defect as the `ten_codes` wipe fixed in
+    58efdbd, and the same fix applies: the backend merges its own fields back in
+    rather than taking dictation from the frontend.
+    """
+    if not isinstance(incoming, dict):
+        return incoming
+    incoming_tgs = incoming.get("talkgroups")
+    if not isinstance(incoming_tgs, list):
+        return incoming
+
+    by_id: dict[int, dict] = {}
+    for tg in ((existing or {}).get("talkgroups") or []):
+        if isinstance(tg, dict):
+            try:
+                by_id[int(tg.get("id", -1))] = tg
+            except (TypeError, ValueError):
+                continue
+
+    merged: list[Any] = []
+    for tg in incoming_tgs:
+        if not isinstance(tg, dict):
+            merged.append(tg)
+            continue
+        try:
+            prior = by_id.get(int(tg.get("id", -1))) or {}
+        except (TypeError, ValueError):
+            prior = {}
+        out = dict(tg)
+        area = normalize(tg.get("area_context"))
+        prior_area = prior.get("area_context") or {}
+        if area:
+            out["area_context"] = merge_server_fields(area, prior_area)
+        else:
+            out.pop("area_context", None)
+        if prior.get(PENDING_KEY):
+            out[PENDING_KEY] = prior[PENDING_KEY]
+        merged.append(out)
+
+    return {**incoming, "talkgroups": merged}
+
+
+# -- Scope resolution ----------------------------------------------------------
+
+def effective(system_area: Optional[dict], tg_area: Optional[dict]) -> dict:
+    """
+    Merge the two scopes: talkgroup wins where set, system fills the gaps.
+
+    `local_knowledge` concatenates rather than replaces, talkgroup entries first
+    so they survive any downstream truncation and outrank a system entry for the
+    same term. A multi-county system whose talkgroup covers one municipality must
+    not have that municipality's terms buried under a county-wide list.
+    """
+    system_area = system_area or {}
+    tg_area = tg_area or {}
+    out: dict[str, Any] = {}
+    for field in PLACE_FIELDS:
+        value = tg_area.get(field) or system_area.get(field)
+        if value:
+            out[field] = value
+    knowledge = normalize_local_knowledge(knowledge_of(tg_area) + knowledge_of(system_area))
+    if knowledge:
+        out["local_knowledge"] = knowledge
+    return out
+
+
+def talkgroup_entry(system_doc: Optional[dict], talkgroup_id: Any) -> dict:
+    """The `config.talkgroups[]` entry for this talkgroup, or `{}`."""
+    if not system_doc or talkgroup_id is None:
+        return {}
+    talkgroups = (system_doc.get("config") or {}).get("talkgroups") or []
+    idx = _tg_index(talkgroups, talkgroup_id)
+    return talkgroups[idx] if idx >= 0 else {}
+
+
+def anchor_key(area: Optional[dict]) -> str:
+    """
+    Stable identity of the place an anchor was resolved from.
+
+    Stored as `resolved_from`, which is what makes "did this actually change?"
+    decidable — so the geocode happens when someone edits a town name, not on
+    every read or every five minutes.
+    """
+    area = area or {}
+    return "|".join((area.get(f) or "").strip().lower() for f in PLACE_FIELDS)
+
+
+def has_place(area: Optional[dict]) -> bool:
+    return bool(anchor_key(area).strip("|"))
+
+
+def anchor_for(system_area: Optional[dict], tg_area: Optional[dict]) -> Optional[dict]:
+    """
+    The anchor to sanity-check geocoded locations against, or None.
+
+    None has one meaning and it is load-bearing: SKIP THE CHECK. It covers an
+    unconfigured system, an area too wide to discriminate, and a stored anchor
+    whose `resolved_from` no longer matches the place it was computed for (an
+    edit landed and the refresh has not run). Accepting a stale or oversized
+    anchor would rubber-stamp locations while looking like verification.
+    """
+    key = anchor_key(effective(system_area, tg_area))
+    for area in (tg_area, system_area):
+        if not area:
+            continue
+        center, radius = area.get("center"), area.get("radius_km")
+        if area.get("resolved_from") == key and center and radius:
+            try:
+                return {
+                    "lat": float(center["lat"]),
+                    "lng": float(center["lng"]),
+                    "radius_km": float(radius),
+                }
+            except (KeyError, TypeError, ValueError):
+                continue
+    return None
+
+
+# -- Anchor geocoding ----------------------------------------------------------
+
+def _query(area: dict) -> str:
+    return ", ".join(area[f] for f in PLACE_FIELDS if area.get(f))
+
+
+async def resolve_anchor(area: dict) -> Optional[dict]:
+    """
+    Geocode municipality/county/state into {center, radius_km}, or None.
+
+    The radius comes from the result's own viewport — half its diagonal — so a
+    village anchors tightly and a county loosely, which is the real difference
+    we care about. Anything wider than `area_anchor_max_radius_km` is discarded
+    rather than stored: see the module docstring.
+    """
+    if not has_place(area):
+        return None
+    query = _query(area)
+    if query in _anchor_cache:
+        return _anchor_cache[query]
+    if not settings.google_maps_api_key:
+        logger.warning("GOOGLE_MAPS_API_KEY not set — area anchors cannot be resolved")
+        return None
+
+    import httpx
+
+    try:
+        async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=5.0) as client:
+            r = await client.get(
+                "https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/geocode/json",
+                params={"address": query, "region": "us", "key": settings.google_maps_api_key},
+            )
+            r.raise_for_status()
+            data = r.json()
+        if data.get("status") != "OK" or not data.get("results"):
+            logger.warning(f"Area anchor: {query!r} did not geocode ({data.get('status')})")
+            _anchor_cache[query] = None
+            return None
+        geometry = data["results"][0].get("geometry") or {}
+        loc = geometry.get("location") or {}
+        lat, lng = float(loc["lat"]), float(loc["lng"])
+        viewport = geometry.get("viewport") or {}
+        ne, sw = viewport.get("northeast"), viewport.get("southwest")
+        if ne and sw:
+            radius_km = geo_dist_km(sw["lat"], sw["lng"], ne["lat"], ne["lng"]) / 2
+        else:
+            radius_km = settings.geocode_max_km
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.warning(f"Area anchor geocoding failed for {query!r}: {e}")
+        return None  # not cached — a transient failure should be retried
+
+    if radius_km > settings.area_anchor_max_radius_km:
+        logger.info(
+            f"Area anchor: {query!r} spans ~{radius_km:.0f}km, wider than "
+            f"area_anchor_max_radius_km={settings.area_anchor_max_radius_km} — storing no "
+            f"anchor, so verification skips rather than rubber-stamps"
+        )
+        _anchor_cache[query] = None
+        return None
+
+    anchor = {
+        "center": {"lat": lat, "lng": lng},
+        "radius_km": round(radius_km, 2),
+        "resolved_from": anchor_key(area),
+        "resolved_at": datetime.now(timezone.utc).isoformat(),
+    }
+    _anchor_cache[query] = anchor
+    logger.info(f"Area anchor: {query!r} -> ({lat:.4f}, {lng:.4f}) r={radius_km:.1f}km")
+    return anchor
+
+
+def _apply(area: dict, anchor: Optional[dict], key: str) -> dict:
+    """Write (or clear) the derived fields on one scope's area_context."""
+    out = {k: v for k, v in area.items() if k not in SERVER_FIELDS}
+    if anchor:
+        out.update(anchor)
+    elif key.strip("|"):
+        # A place is set but produced no usable anchor. Record that we tried, so
+        # the next write does not geocode it again for the same answer.
+        out["resolved_from"] = key
+        out["resolved_at"] = datetime.now(timezone.utc).isoformat()
+    return out
+
+
+async def refresh_anchors(system_doc: dict) -> dict:
+    """
+    Recompute anchors for a system and every talkgroup that sets a place.
+
+    Returns a Firestore patch — `{}` when nothing needed resolving. Talkgroups
+    are refreshed alongside the system because a talkgroup's anchor is derived
+    from its EFFECTIVE place (its own fields over the system's), so editing the
+    system's county silently changes what every talkgroup should be anchored to.
+
+    Only scopes whose `resolved_from` no longer matches are geocoded, and the
+    per-query cache means N talkgroups in one town cost one request.
+    """
+    system_area = dict(system_doc.get("area_context") or {})
+    patch: dict[str, Any] = {}
+
+    system_key = anchor_key(system_area)
+    if system_area.get("resolved_from") != system_key:
+        anchor = await resolve_anchor(system_area) if has_place(system_area) else None
+        patch["area_context"] = _apply(system_area, anchor, system_key)
+        system_area = patch["area_context"]
+
+    config = system_doc.get("config") or {}
+    talkgroups = config.get("talkgroups")
+    if not isinstance(talkgroups, list):
+        return patch
+
+    updated: list[dict] = []
+    changed = False
+    for tg in talkgroups:
+        if not isinstance(tg, dict):
+            updated.append(tg)
+            continue
+        tg_area = tg.get("area_context") or {}
+        # No place of its own means it inherits the system's anchor wholesale —
+        # nothing to store here, and anchor_for() falls back to the system.
+        if not has_place(tg_area):
+            if any(tg_area.get(f) is not None for f in SERVER_FIELDS):
+                tg = {**tg, "area_context": {k: v for k, v in tg_area.items() if k not in SERVER_FIELDS}}
+                changed = True
+            updated.append(tg)
+            continue
+        key = anchor_key(effective(system_area, tg_area))
+        if tg_area.get("resolved_from") == key:
+            updated.append(tg)
+            continue
+        anchor = await resolve_anchor(effective(system_area, tg_area))
+        updated.append({**tg, "area_context": _apply(tg_area, anchor, key)})
+        changed = True
+
+    if changed:
+        patch["config"] = {**config, "talkgroups": updated}
+    return patch
+
+
+# -- Talkgroup-level pending terms ---------------------------------------------
+#
+# Proposals land on the TALKGROUP and are never promoted to the system
+# automatically (server-26#37). The argument is blast radius: a wrong term on a
+# talkgroup misleads one channel, the same term at system level misleads every
+# channel on that system — including one 400km away on a statewide system, which
+# is exactly the context poisoning the scope rule exists to prevent. If a term
+# genuinely applies system-wide, carrying it on several talkgroups costs almost
+# nothing; auto-promoting a wrong one is expensive to notice.
+
+PENDING_KEY = "local_knowledge_pending"
+
+
+def _tg_index(talkgroups: list, talkgroup_id: Any) -> int:
+    try:
+        wanted = int(talkgroup_id)
+    except (TypeError, ValueError):
+        return -1
+    for i, tg in enumerate(talkgroups):
+        if not isinstance(tg, dict):
+            continue
+        try:
+            if int(tg.get("id", -1)) == wanted:
+                return i
+        except (TypeError, ValueError):
+            continue
+    return -1
+
+
+def _known_terms(tg: dict, system_doc: dict) -> set[str]:
+    """Everything this talkgroup already knows, at either scope, plus pending."""
+    known = {
+        e["term"].lower()
+        for e in effective(system_doc.get("area_context"), tg.get("area_context"))
+        .get("local_knowledge", [])
+    }
+    known |= {str(t).lower() for t in (tg.get("vocabulary") or [])}
+    known |= {str(t).lower() for t in (system_doc.get("vocabulary") or [])}
+    known |= {str(p.get("term", "")).lower() for p in (tg.get(PENDING_KEY) or [])}
+    return known
+
+
+async def add_pending(system_id: str, talkgroup_id: Any, entries: list[dict]) -> int:
+    """
+    Queue proposed {term, meaning} entries on one talkgroup for human review.
+
+    Returns how many were actually queued. Nothing here writes to
+    `local_knowledge` — approval is a person's decision, always.
+    """
+    from app.internal import firestore as fstore
+
+    if not system_id or talkgroup_id is None or not entries:
+        return 0
+    system_doc = await fstore.doc_get("systems", system_id)
+    if not system_doc:
+        return 0
+    config = dict(system_doc.get("config") or {})
+    talkgroups = list(config.get("talkgroups") or [])
+    idx = _tg_index(talkgroups, talkgroup_id)
+    if idx < 0:
+        return 0
+
+    tg = dict(talkgroups[idx])
+    known = _known_terms(tg, system_doc)
+    now = datetime.now(timezone.utc).isoformat()
+    queued: list[dict] = []
+    for entry in entries:
+        term = str(entry.get("term") or "").strip()
+        if not term or term.lower() in known:
+            continue
+        known.add(term.lower())
+        queued.append({
+            "term": term,
+            "meaning": entry.get("meaning") or None,
+            "source": entry.get("source") or "verifier",
+            "added_at": now,
+            "source_call_ids": entry.get("source_call_ids") or [],
+        })
+    if not queued:
+        return 0
+
+    tg[PENDING_KEY] = list(tg.get(PENDING_KEY) or []) + queued
+    talkgroups[idx] = tg
+    config["talkgroups"] = talkgroups
+    await fstore.doc_update("systems", system_id, {"config": config})
+    logger.info(
+        f"Local knowledge: {len(queued)} term(s) proposed for talkgroup "
+        f"{talkgroup_id} on system {system_id}: {[q['term'] for q in queued]}"
+    )
+    return len(queued)
+
+
+async def resolve_pending(system_id: str, talkgroup_id: Any, term: str, approve: bool) -> bool:
+    """Approve a pending term onto the talkgroup, or dismiss it. Never promotes."""
+    from app.internal import firestore as fstore
+
+    system_doc = await fstore.doc_get("systems", system_id)
+    if not system_doc:
+        return False
+    config = dict(system_doc.get("config") or {})
+    talkgroups = list(config.get("talkgroups") or [])
+    idx = _tg_index(talkgroups, talkgroup_id)
+    if idx < 0:
+        return False
+
+    tg = dict(talkgroups[idx])
+    pending = list(tg.get(PENDING_KEY) or [])
+    match = next((p for p in pending if str(p.get("term", "")).lower() == term.lower()), None)
+    if match is None:
+        return False
+    tg[PENDING_KEY] = [p for p in pending if p is not match]
+    if approve:
+        area = dict(tg.get("area_context") or {})
+        area["local_knowledge"] = normalize_local_knowledge(
+            list(area.get("local_knowledge") or [])
+            + [{"term": match["term"], "meaning": match.get("meaning")}]
+        )
+        tg["area_context"] = area
+    talkgroups[idx] = tg
+    config["talkgroups"] = talkgroups
+    await fstore.doc_update("systems", system_id, {"config": config})
+    return True
+
+
+async def refresh_anchors_bg(system_id: str) -> None:
+    """Fire-and-forget refresh, for callers that must not block on Maps."""
+    from app.internal import firestore as fstore
+
+    try:
+        doc = await fstore.doc_get("systems", system_id)
+        if not doc:
+            return
+        patch = await refresh_anchors(doc)
+        if patch:
+            await fstore.doc_update("systems", system_id, patch)
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.warning(f"Area anchor refresh failed for system {system_id}: {e}")
+
+
+def schedule_refresh(system_id: str) -> None:
+    """Kick a refresh without making the caller wait for the geocoder."""
+    try:
+        asyncio.get_running_loop().create_task(refresh_anchors_bg(system_id))
+    except RuntimeError:  # no loop (tests, scripts) — nothing to schedule
+        pass

drb-c2-core/app/internal/intelligence.py

@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ import re
 from typing import Optional
 from app.internal.logger import logger
 from app.internal import firestore as fstore
+from app.internal import area_context
 # Location validity is defined once, by the module that owns the incident's
 # location/pin invariant.  incident_correlator does not import this module, so
 # this is not a cycle.
@@ -225,6 +226,20 @@ async def extract_scenes(
             node_lat = node_doc.get("lat")
             node_lon = node_doc.get("lon")
 
+    # The talkgroup's own anchor and place, when an operator has described it
+    # (server-26#36). This is what "where is this channel" should mean; the node
+    # position below is only the fallback for a system nobody has described.
+    tg_anchor: Optional[dict] = None
+    tg_area: dict = {}
+    if system_id:
+        system_doc = await fstore.doc_get_cached("systems", system_id)
+        if system_doc:
+            system_area = system_doc.get("area_context") or {}
+            tg_entry = area_context.talkgroup_entry(system_doc, talkgroup_id)
+            own_area = tg_entry.get("area_context") or {}
+            tg_area = area_context.effective(system_area, own_area)
+            tg_anchor = area_context.anchor_for(system_area, own_area)
+
     processed: list[dict] = []
     for scene in raw_scenes:
         tags:               list[str]      = scene.get("tags") or []
@@ -273,20 +288,27 @@ async def extract_scenes(
         # Build the most specific query possible: location + municipality + state.
         # e.g. "High Street" → "High Street, Yorktown, New York"
         # This prevents generic street names from resolving to wrong-country results.
+        #
+        # Prefer the place an operator actually set over the one guessed from
+        # the talkgroup's name and the node's reverse-geocoded position. A name
+        # like "Ossining PD" gives a municipality with no state behind it, which
+        # is how a generic street name ends up resolving in the wrong half of
+        # the country.
         location_coords: Optional[dict] = None
-        if location and node_lat is not None and node_lon is not None:
+        if location:
-            muni   = _municipality_from_tg(talkgroup_name)
+            parts = [location]
-            state  = await _get_node_state(node_id or "", node_lat, node_lon) if node_id else ""
+            if tg_area.get("municipality") or tg_area.get("county") or tg_area.get("state"):
-            county = _node_county_cache.get(node_id or "") if node_id else ""
+                parts += [tg_area[f] for f in area_context.PLACE_FIELDS if tg_area.get(f)]
-            parts  = [location]
+            elif node_lat is not None and node_lon is not None:
-            if muni:
+                muni   = _municipality_from_tg(talkgroup_name)
-                parts.append(muni)
+                state  = await _get_node_state(node_id or "", node_lat, node_lon) if node_id else ""
-            if county:
+                county = _node_county_cache.get(node_id or "") if node_id else ""
-                parts.append(county)
+                parts += [p for p in (muni, county, state) if p]
-            if state:
-                parts.append(state)
             query = ", ".join(parts)
-            location_coords = await _geocode_location(query, node_lat, node_lon)
+            if tg_anchor or (node_lat is not None and node_lon is not None):
+                location_coords = await _geocode_location(
+                    query, node_lat, node_lon, anchor=tg_anchor
+                )
 
         # Embed this scene's content
         scene_text = _build_scene_embed_text(
@@ -411,12 +433,25 @@ async def _get_node_state(node_id: str, lat: float, lon: float) -> str:
 
 
 async def _geocode_location(
-    location_str: str, node_lat: float, node_lon: float
+    location_str: str,
+    node_lat: Optional[float] = None,
+    node_lon: Optional[float] = None,
+    anchor: Optional[dict] = None,
 ) -> Optional[dict]:
     """
-    Geocode using Google Maps Geocoding API, biased toward the node's area.
+    Geocode using Google Maps Geocoding API, biased toward the channel's area.
-    Returns {"lat": float, "lng": float} or None if geocoding fails or the
+
-    result is farther than geocode_max_km from the node (wrong-jurisdiction guard).
+    Returns {"lat": float, "lng": float}, or None if geocoding fails or the
+    result lands outside the area this channel covers.
+
+    THE REFERENCE POINT IS THE TALKGROUP, NOT THE NODE (server-26#6 / #37). This
+    used to reject anything more than geocode_max_km (40km) from the receiving
+    node, which conflates an antenna with a jurisdiction: a system can span a
+    county or several, so a node legitimately sits far from the area a talkgroup
+    covers, and real dispatch locations were being thrown away for it. When the
+    talkgroup has a resolved anchor, that is the reference and its own radius is
+    the bound. Distance-from-node stays only as the fallback for a system nobody
+    has described yet — it was always a stand-in for this.
     """
     import httpx
     from app.config import settings
@@ -425,9 +460,24 @@ async def _geocode_location(
         logger.warning("GOOGLE_MAPS_API_KEY not set — geocoding disabled")
         return None
 
+    if anchor:
+        ref_lat, ref_lon = anchor["lat"], anchor["lng"]
+        max_km = anchor["radius_km"]
+        # Bias box scaled to the anchor rather than a fixed half-degree, so a
+        # village biases tightly and a county loosely.
+        delta = max(max_km / 111.0, 0.05)
+        ref_label = "anchor"
+    elif node_lat is not None and node_lon is not None:
+        ref_lat, ref_lon = node_lat, node_lon
+        max_km = settings.geocode_max_km
+        delta = _GEO_DELTA
+        ref_label = "node"
+    else:
+        return None
+
     bounds = (
-        f"{node_lat - _GEO_DELTA},{node_lon - _GEO_DELTA}"
+        f"{ref_lat - delta},{ref_lon - delta}"
-        f"|{node_lat + _GEO_DELTA},{node_lon + _GEO_DELTA}"
+        f"|{ref_lat + delta},{ref_lon + delta}"
     )
     params = {
         "address": location_str,
@@ -465,15 +515,18 @@ async def _geocode_location(
                 return None
             loc = result["geometry"]["location"]
             lat, lng = float(loc["lat"]), float(loc["lng"])
-            dist_km = _geo_dist_km(node_lat, node_lon, lat, lng)
+            dist_km = _geo_dist_km(ref_lat, ref_lon, lat, lng)
-            if dist_km > settings.geocode_max_km:
+            if dist_km > max_km:
                 logger.warning(
                     f"Geocoding rejected '{location_str}' → ({lat:.4f}, {lng:.4f}) "
-                    f"— {dist_km:.1f}km from node exceeds geocode_max_km={settings.geocode_max_km}"
+                    f"— {dist_km:.1f}km from {ref_label} exceeds {max_km:.1f}km"
                 )
                 return None
             coords = {"lat": lat, "lng": lng}
-            logger.info(f"Geocoded '{location_str}' → {coords} ({dist_km:.1f}km from node) [{location_type}]")
+            logger.info(
+                f"Geocoded '{location_str}' → {coords} "
+                f"({dist_km:.1f}km from {ref_label}) [{location_type}]"
+            )
             return coords
     except Exception as e:
         logger.warning(f"Geocoding failed for '{location_str}': {e}")

drb-c2-core/app/internal/place_verifier.py

@@ -0,0 +1,255 @@
+"""
+Place verification — is the name the corrector produced a real place *here*?
+
+The transcript corrector (`transcript_correction.py`) substitutes sound-alikes
+against a reference list. It has no way to tell whether its own output is a real
+place, so "Cool Parts, Illinois" and "Shout out to Optum" are exactly as
+acceptable to it as a genuine street name. This module is the check
+(server-26#37).
+
+MAPS AS A VERIFIER, NOT AS PROMPT STUFFING. Injecting every road and POI in a
+town would be hundreds of names on a pass that runs on every transcribed call.
+Instead we take the handful of location-shaped nouns a transcript actually
+contains and ask one question per noun:
+
+  1. Geocode it, bounded by the talkgroup's anchor.
+  2. Inside the radius -> accept, done.
+  3. Outside, or no result -> look for a sound-alike that DOES resolve inside.
+  4. Found one -> correct to it, and propose {term, meaning} to that
+     talkgroup's local_knowledge as pending.
+
+Cost scales with location nouns, not call volume, and every verified miss
+permanently improves the reference data for that channel.
+
+NO ANCHOR MEANS SKIP, NOT ACCEPT. An anchor too wide to discriminate is not
+stored at all (see `area_context`), and without one this module returns
+immediately. A statewide radius would confirm anything inside it, which is worse
+than not checking — it looks like verification and is not.
+
+THE FREE TIER RUNS FIRST. A sound-alike among the terms the operator already
+entered costs nothing and is more trustworthy than anything Maps guesses, so
+`local_knowledge` and `vocabulary` are searched before any request goes out.
+"""
+
+import re
+from difflib import SequenceMatcher
+from typing import Any, Optional
+
+from app.config import settings
+from app.internal import area_context
+from app.internal.logger import logger
+
+# Soundex-style consonant classes. Letters that a vocoder + Whisper routinely
+# swap land in the same bucket, so "Optum"/"Ossining" stay far apart while
+# "Snowden"/"Snowdon" collapse together.
+_CLASSES = {
+    "b": "1", "f": "1", "p": "1", "v": "1",
+    "c": "2", "g": "2", "j": "2", "k": "2", "q": "2", "s": "2", "x": "2", "z": "2",
+    "d": "3", "t": "3",
+    "l": "4",
+    "m": "5", "n": "5",
+    "r": "6",
+}
+_DIGRAPHS = (("ph", "f"), ("gh", "g"), ("ck", "k"), ("wr", "r"), ("kn", "n"), ("wh", "w"))
+
+
+def _norm(text: str) -> str:
+    return re.sub(r"[^a-z0-9]+", " ", (text or "").lower()).strip()
+
+
+def phonetic_key(text: str) -> str:
+    """
+    Consonant-class skeleton of a name. Vowels drop out; a run of the same class
+    collapses unless a vowel separates it.
+    """
+    letters = re.sub(r"[^a-z]", "", (text or "").lower())
+    for a, b in _DIGRAPHS:
+        letters = letters.replace(a, b)
+    out: list[str] = []
+    prev = ""
+    for ch in letters:
+        code = _CLASSES.get(ch, "")
+        if code and code != prev:
+            out.append(code)
+        prev = code if ch not in "aeiouyhw" else ""
+    return "".join(out)
+
+
+def sounds_like(heard: str, candidate: str) -> float:
+    """
+    0..1 similarity, the better of the phonetic and the literal comparison.
+
+    Both are needed: Whisper errors are sometimes phonetic ("5 acre" for
+    "5-baker") and sometimes near-spellings ("Croton Ave" for "Croton Avenue"),
+    and a key comparison alone scores the second one poorly.
+    """
+    literal = SequenceMatcher(None, _norm(heard), _norm(candidate)).ratio()
+    ka, kb = phonetic_key(heard), phonetic_key(candidate)
+    phonetic = SequenceMatcher(None, ka, kb).ratio() if ka and kb else 0.0
+    return max(literal, phonetic)
+
+
+# -- Maps ----------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def _place_suffix(area: dict) -> str:
+    parts = [area[f] for f in area_context.PLACE_FIELDS if area.get(f)]
+    return ", ".join(parts)
+
+
+async def _geocode_in_anchor(query: str, anchor: dict) -> Optional[dict]:
+    """Geocode `query` and return its coords only if they land inside the anchor."""
+    from app.internal.intelligence import _geocode_location
+
+    coords = await _geocode_location(query, anchor=anchor)
+    return coords
+
+
+async def _places_soundalike(heard: str, anchor: dict) -> Optional[dict]:
+    """
+    Ask Maps for places near the anchor matching the misheard text.
+
+    Places Text Search does its own fuzzy matching against a biased region, which
+    is usually enough — but "usually" is not a standard, so the result still has
+    to pass `sounds_like` before it is allowed to rewrite a transcript. Without
+    that guard the API happily returns the nearest gas station for any garbage
+    string.
+    """
+    if not settings.google_maps_api_key:
+        return None
+
+    import httpx
+
+    try:
+        async with httpx.AsyncClient(timeout=5.0) as client:
+            r = await client.get(
+                "https://maps.googleapis.com/maps/api/place/textsearch/json",
+                params={
+                    "query": heard,
+                    "location": f"{anchor['lat']},{anchor['lng']}",
+                    "radius": int(anchor["radius_km"] * 1000),
+                    "key": settings.google_maps_api_key,
+                },
+            )
+            r.raise_for_status()
+            data = r.json()
+    except Exception as e:
+        logger.warning(f"Place search failed for {heard!r}: {e}")
+        return None
+
+    if data.get("status") not in ("OK", "ZERO_RESULTS"):
+        logger.warning(f"Place search for {heard!r} returned {data.get('status')}")
+        return None
+
+    for result in (data.get("results") or [])[:5]:
+        name = (result.get("name") or "").strip()
+        loc = (result.get("geometry") or {}).get("location") or {}
+        if not name or "lat" not in loc:
+            continue
+        distance = area_context.geo_dist_km(
+            anchor["lat"], anchor["lng"], float(loc["lat"]), float(loc["lng"])
+        )
+        if distance > anchor["radius_km"]:
+            continue
+        score = sounds_like(heard, name)
+        if score >= settings.place_soundalike_min_ratio:
+            return {"term": name, "meaning": result.get("formatted_address") or None, "score": score}
+    return None
+
+
+def _known_soundalike(heard: str, area: dict) -> Optional[dict]:
+    """Best sound-alike among terms the operator already entered. Free."""
+    best: Optional[dict] = None
+    for entry in area.get("local_knowledge") or []:
+        term = entry.get("term") or ""
+        if not term or _norm(term) == _norm(heard):
+            continue
+        score = sounds_like(heard, term)
+        if score >= settings.place_soundalike_min_ratio and (best is None or score > best["score"]):
+            best = {"term": term, "meaning": entry.get("meaning"), "score": score, "known": True}
+    return best
+
+
+# -- Public --------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def _substitute(text: str, swaps: list[tuple[str, str]]) -> str:
+    for heard, replacement in swaps:
+        text = re.sub(rf"\b{re.escape(heard)}\b", replacement, text, flags=re.IGNORECASE)
+    return text
+
+
+async def verify(
+    call_id: str,
+    text: str,
+    segments: Optional[list[dict]],
+    locations: list[str],
+    system_area: Optional[dict],
+    tg_area: Optional[dict],
+    system_id: Optional[str] = None,
+    talkgroup_id: Optional[Any] = None,
+) -> tuple[Optional[str], Optional[list[dict]]]:
+    """
+    Check the corrector's location nouns against the talkgroup's anchor.
+
+    Returns (text, segments) with verified substitutions applied, or (None, None)
+    when nothing changed. Like correction itself, this is an improvement and
+    never a dependency: any failure leaves the transcript exactly as it was.
+    """
+    if not settings.place_verification_enabled or not locations:
+        return None, None
+
+    anchor = area_context.anchor_for(system_area, tg_area)
+    if not anchor:
+        return None, None  # load-bearing: no anchor means skip, never accept
+
+    area = area_context.effective(system_area, tg_area)
+    suffix = _place_suffix(area)
+    swaps: list[tuple[str, str]] = []
+    proposals: list[dict] = []
+
+    for heard in locations[: settings.place_verify_max_per_call]:
+        heard = (heard or "").strip()
+        if not heard:
+            continue
+        query = f"{heard}, {suffix}" if suffix else heard
+        try:
+            if await _geocode_in_anchor(query, anchor):
+                continue  # real place, in the right area — nothing to do
+            candidate = _known_soundalike(heard, area) or await _places_soundalike(heard, anchor)
+        except Exception as e:
+            logger.warning(f"Place verification failed for {heard!r} on call {call_id}: {e}")
+            continue
+        if not candidate:
+            logger.info(
+                f"Place verification: {heard!r} (call {call_id}) does not resolve near the "
+                f"anchor and has no sound-alike that does — leaving it alone"
+            )
+            continue
+        swaps.append((heard, candidate["term"]))
+        if not candidate.get("known"):
+            proposals.append({
+                "term": candidate["term"],
+                "meaning": candidate.get("meaning"),
+                "source": "place_verifier",
+                "source_call_ids": [call_id],
+            })
+        logger.info(
+            f"Place verification: {heard!r} -> {candidate['term']!r} "
+            f"(score {candidate['score']:.2f}, call {call_id})"
+        )
+
+    if not swaps:
+        return None, None
+
+    if proposals and system_id and talkgroup_id is not None:
+        try:
+            await area_context.add_pending(system_id, talkgroup_id, proposals)
+        except Exception as e:
+            logger.warning(f"Could not queue verified terms for call {call_id}: {e}")
+
+    new_text = _substitute(text or "", swaps)
+    new_segments = None
+    if segments:
+        new_segments = [{**s, "text": _substitute(s.get("text", ""), swaps)} for s in segments]
+        if all(a["text"] == b.get("text") for a, b in zip(new_segments, segments)):
+            new_segments = None
+    return (new_text if new_text != (text or "") else None), new_segments

drb-c2-core/app/internal/transcript_correction.py

@@ -35,7 +35,9 @@ import json
 from typing import Any, Optional
 
 from app.config import settings
+from app.internal import area_context
 from app.internal import firestore as fstore
+from app.internal import place_verifier
 from app.internal.logger import logger
 
 # A transcript this short has no proper nouns to get wrong — "10-4.", "6-2,
@@ -65,6 +67,10 @@ Return JSON:
               are numbered.
   not_speech: true if this is recogniser noise rather than a transmission
   changed:    list of ["heard" -> "corrected"] pairs you applied, for audit
+  locations:  every place name in your corrected output, exactly as it appears
+              there — streets, intersections, businesses, schools, towns,
+              landmarks. Include ones you are unsure of; that is the point.
+              A unit call sign or a person's name is NOT a location.
 
 {transcript}"""
 
@@ -107,35 +113,45 @@ def _talkgroup_entry(system_doc: dict, talkgroup_id: Optional[int]) -> dict:
     return {}
 
 
-def _area_lines(area: dict, label: str) -> list[str]:
+def _area_lines(area: dict) -> list[str]:
-    """Render an area_context dict as prompt lines. Empty when nothing is set."""
+    """
+    Render a merged area_context as prompt lines. Empty when nothing is set.
+
+    One block, not one per scope: by the time this runs the two scopes have
+    already been merged with talkgroup ahead of system, and showing the model
+    two competing lists invites it to pick from the wrong one.
+    """
     if not area:
         return []
-    parts: list[str] = []
+    lines: list[str] = []
-    for key, heading in (
+    place = ", ".join(
-        ("municipality", "Municipality"),
+        str(area[f]) for f in area_context.PLACE_FIELDS if area.get(f)
-        ("county", "County"),
+    )
-        ("roads", "Roads and highways"),
+    if place:
-        ("landmarks", "Landmarks, businesses and facilities"),
+        lines.append(f"Area covered by this channel: {place}")
-    ):
+    knowledge = area.get("local_knowledge") or []
-        value = area.get(key)
+    if knowledge:
-        if not value:
+        lines.append("Local names heard on this channel:")
-            continue
+        lines.extend(
-        if isinstance(value, list):
+            f"  {e['term']} — {e['meaning']}" if e.get("meaning") else f"  {e['term']}"
-            value = ", ".join(str(v) for v in value if v)
+            for e in knowledge
-        if value:
+        )
-            parts.append(f"  {heading}: {value}")
+    return lines
-    return [f"{label}:"] + parts if parts else []
 
 
 async def resolve_context(system_id: Optional[str], talkgroup_id: Optional[int]) -> dict:
     """
     Merge the reference data a corrector needs, talkgroup ahead of system.
 
-    Returns {"vocabulary": [...], "ten_codes": {...}, "area_lines": [...]}.
+    Returns {"vocabulary", "ten_codes", "area_lines", "area", "system_area",
-    Empty everywhere is legitimate — a system nobody has configured yet.
+    "tg_area"}. Empty everywhere is legitimate — a system nobody has configured
+    yet. The two raw scopes come back alongside the merge because the place
+    verifier needs them to pick an anchor (server-26#37).
     """
-    empty: dict[str, Any] = {"vocabulary": [], "ten_codes": {}, "area_lines": []}
+    empty: dict[str, Any] = {
+        "vocabulary": [], "ten_codes": {}, "area_lines": [],
+        "area": {}, "system_area": {}, "tg_area": {},
+    }
     if not system_id:
         return empty
 
@@ -155,12 +171,18 @@ async def resolve_context(system_id: Optional[str], talkgroup_id: Optional[int])
     ten_codes = dict(system_doc.get("ten_codes") or {})
     ten_codes.update(tg.get("ten_codes") or {})
 
-    area_lines = (
+    system_area = system_doc.get("area_context") or {}
-        _area_lines(tg.get("area_context") or {}, "Area covered by this talkgroup")
+    tg_area = tg.get("area_context") or {}
-        + _area_lines(system_doc.get("area_context") or {}, "Area covered by this system")
+    area = area_context.effective(system_area, tg_area)
-    )
 
-    return {"vocabulary": vocabulary, "ten_codes": ten_codes, "area_lines": area_lines}
+    return {
+        "vocabulary": vocabulary,
+        "ten_codes": ten_codes,
+        "area_lines": _area_lines(area),
+        "area": area,
+        "system_area": system_area,
+        "tg_area": tg_area,
+    }
 
 
 def build_context_block(context: dict, talkgroup_name: Optional[str]) -> str:
@@ -267,6 +289,34 @@ async def correct(
                 f"segment(s) against {len(segments)} — discarding segment corrections"
             )
 
+    # Maps has the last word on place names (server-26#37). The corrector can
+    # only match against the list it was handed, so a plausible-sounding invention
+    # — "Cool Parts, Illinois" — reads exactly like a real street to it. The
+    # verifier geocodes each location noun against the talkgroup's anchor and,
+    # on a miss, looks for a sound-alike that does resolve there. It runs on the
+    # corrected copy so it judges the text everything downstream will actually
+    # read, and it skips entirely when there is no discriminating anchor.
+    if not not_speech:
+        locations = [x for x in (raw.get("locations") or []) if isinstance(x, str)]
+        try:
+            verified_text, verified_segments = await place_verifier.verify(
+                call_id,
+                corrected or text,
+                corrected_segments or segments,
+                locations,
+                context.get("system_area"),
+                context.get("tg_area"),
+                system_id=system_id,
+                talkgroup_id=talkgroup_id,
+            )
+        except Exception as e:
+            logger.warning(f"Place verification failed for call {call_id}: {e}")
+            verified_text, verified_segments = None, None
+        if verified_text:
+            corrected = verified_text
+        if verified_segments:
+            corrected_segments = verified_segments
+
     if corrected or corrected_segments or not_speech:
         changed = raw.get("changed") or []
         logger.info(

drb-c2-core/app/internal/vocabulary_learner.py

@@ -20,8 +20,9 @@ import json
 import random
 import re
 from datetime import datetime, timezone, timedelta
-from typing import Optional
+from typing import Any, Optional
 from app.internal.logger import logger
+from app.internal import area_context
 from app.internal import firestore as fstore
 from app.config import settings
 
@@ -57,26 +58,32 @@ Do NOT include common English words. Max 80 terms. Only include what you are con
 accurate for this specific area; return fewer terms rather than guessing."""
 
 _INDUCTION_PROMPT = """\
-You are analyzing P25 emergency radio transcripts to find vocabulary terms that should be \
+You are analyzing P25 emergency radio transcripts from ONE talkgroup (a single radio channel) \
-added to improve future speech-to-text accuracy for this system.
+to find local terms that should be added to improve future speech-to-text accuracy for that \
+channel.
 
 System: {system_name}
-Existing approved vocabulary (do not re-propose these): {existing_vocab}
+Channel: {talkgroup_name}
+Area: {area_hint}
+Terms this channel already knows (do not re-propose these): {existing_vocab}
 
 Sampled transcripts:
 {transcript_block}
 
-Find terms that are LIKELY STT errors or local terms missing from the vocabulary:
+Find terms that are LIKELY STT errors or local terms missing from the list:
 - Unit IDs that appear garbled (e.g. "5 acre" → "5-baker")
 - Agency acronyms spelled out phonetically (e.g. "why vac" → "YVAC")
 - Street names or locations that look misspelled or oddly transcribed
-- Callsigns or local codes not yet in the vocabulary
+- Callsigns or local codes not yet known
 
 Return ONLY a JSON object:
-{{"new_terms": ["term1", "term2", ...]}}
+{{"new_terms": [{{"term": "YVAC", "meaning": "Yorktown Volunteer Ambulance Corps"}}, ...]}}
 
-Only include high-confidence additions not already in existing vocabulary.
+`meaning` is what the term refers to — an agency, a road, a unit type. Omit it or use null \
-Return {{"new_terms": []}} if nothing new is found."""
+when you genuinely do not know; a term with no meaning is still worth proposing.
+
+Only propose what is specific to THIS channel and this area. Do not propose a term just \
+because it appears often. Return {{"new_terms": []}} if nothing new is found."""
 
 
 # ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -97,10 +104,17 @@ async def bootstrap_system_vocabulary(system_id: str) -> list[str]:
     system_name = system_doc.get("name", "Unknown")
     system_type = system_doc.get("type", "P25")
 
-    # Build area hint from configured talkgroup names
+    # Prefer the place an operator actually set. Guessing the area from talkgroup
-    talkgroups = system_doc.get("config", {}).get("talkgroups", [])
+    # names is thin for a single-municipality system and close to useless for a
-    tg_names = [tg.get("name", "") for tg in talkgroups if tg.get("name")][:8]
+    # multi-county one (server-26#36), so it is only the fallback now.
-    area_hint = f"Talkgroups include: {', '.join(tg_names)}" if tg_names else "Unknown area"
+    area = system_doc.get("area_context") or {}
+    place = ", ".join(str(area[f]) for f in area_context.PLACE_FIELDS if area.get(f))
+    if place:
+        area_hint = place
+    else:
+        talkgroups = system_doc.get("config", {}).get("talkgroups", [])
+        tg_names = [tg.get("name", "") for tg in talkgroups if tg.get("name")][:8]
+        area_hint = f"Talkgroups include: {', '.join(tg_names)}" if tg_names else "Unknown area"
 
     terms = await asyncio.to_thread(_sync_bootstrap, system_name, system_type, area_hint)
     if not terms:
@@ -279,9 +293,20 @@ async def _run_induction_pass() -> None:
 
 
 async def _induct_system(system_id: str, system_doc: dict) -> None:
-    """Sample random transcripts for a system and propose new vocabulary."""
+    """
-    system_name   = system_doc.get("name", "Unknown")
+    Sample recent transcripts per TALKGROUP and propose local knowledge there.
-    existing_vocab: list[str] = system_doc.get("vocabulary") or []
+
+    Proposals used to land at system level, which is the wrong blast radius
+    (server-26#37). A wrong term on a talkgroup misleads one channel; the same
+    term at system level misleads every channel on that system — including one
+    400km away on a statewide system, which is exactly the context poisoning the
+    scope rule exists to prevent. If a term really does apply system-wide,
+    carrying it on several talkgroups costs almost nothing, while auto-promoting
+    a wrong one is expensive to notice. So: talkgroup-level pending terms only,
+    and nothing here ever promotes upward or approves itself.
+    """
+    system_name = system_doc.get("name", "Unknown")
+    system_area = system_doc.get("area_context") or {}
 
     # Fetch calls from the last 7 days only — avoids scanning the entire history.
     # Active calls have ended_at=None and are excluded by the range filter automatically.
@@ -294,57 +319,87 @@ async def _induct_system(system_id: str, system_doc: dict) -> None:
     if not all_calls:
         return
 
-    # Random sample up to the token budget (4 chars ≈ 1 token)
+    by_tg: dict[Any, list[dict]] = {}
-    random.shuffle(all_calls)
+    for call in all_calls:
-    char_budget = settings.vocabulary_induction_sample_tokens * 4
+        tgid = call.get("talkgroup_id")
+        if tgid is None:
+            continue
+        by_tg.setdefault(tgid, []).append(call)
+
+    # The sample budget is per system, split across the talkgroups that have
+    # traffic — a channel with 400 calls should not starve one with 12.
+    char_budget = max(
+        (settings.vocabulary_induction_sample_tokens * 4) // max(len(by_tg), 1), 800
+    )
+
+    for talkgroup_id, calls in by_tg.items():
+        try:
+            await _induct_talkgroup(
+                system_id, system_doc, system_name, system_area,
+                talkgroup_id, calls, char_budget,
+            )
+        except Exception as e:
+            logger.warning(
+                f"Induction failed for talkgroup {talkgroup_id} on system {system_id}: {e}"
+            )
+
+
+async def _induct_talkgroup(
+    system_id: str,
+    system_doc: dict,
+    system_name: str,
+    system_area: dict,
+    talkgroup_id: Any,
+    calls: list[dict],
+    char_budget: int,
+) -> None:
+    tg_entry = area_context.talkgroup_entry(system_doc, talkgroup_id)
+    tg_area = tg_entry.get("area_context") or {}
+    area = area_context.effective(system_area, tg_area)
+
+    talkgroup_name = (
+        tg_entry.get("name")
+        or calls[0].get("talkgroup_name")
+        or f"TGID {talkgroup_id}"
+    )
+    known = area_context._known_terms(tg_entry, system_doc)
+
+    random.shuffle(calls)
     transcript_block = ""
     sampled_call_docs: list[dict] = []
-    sampled = 0
+    for call in calls:
-    for call in all_calls:
         text = call.get("transcript_corrected") or call.get("transcript") or ""
         if not text:
             continue
         if len(transcript_block) + len(text) > char_budget:
             break
-        tg = call.get("talkgroup_name") or f"TGID {call.get('talkgroup_id', '?')}"
+        transcript_block += f"{text}\n"
-        transcript_block += f"[{tg}] {text}\n"
         sampled_call_docs.append(call)
-        sampled += 1
 
-    if sampled < 3:
+    if len(sampled_call_docs) < 3:
-        return  # not enough data to learn from yet
+        return  # not enough data on this channel to learn from yet
 
-    new_terms = await asyncio.to_thread(
+    place = ", ".join(str(area[f]) for f in area_context.PLACE_FIELDS if area.get(f))
-        _sync_induct, system_name, existing_vocab, transcript_block
+    proposed = await asyncio.to_thread(
+        _sync_induct,
+        system_name, talkgroup_name, place or "not set",
+        sorted(known)[:80], transcript_block,
     )
-    if not new_terms:
+    if not proposed:
         return
 
-    now = datetime.now(timezone.utc).isoformat()
+    entries = [
-    existing_pending: list[dict] = system_doc.get("vocabulary_pending") or []
+        {
-    pending_lower = {p["term"].lower() for p in existing_pending}
+            "term": p["term"],
-    vocab_lower   = {t.lower() for t in existing_vocab}
+            "meaning": p.get("meaning"),
-
-    to_queue = []
-    for t in new_terms:
-        if t.lower() in vocab_lower or t.lower() in pending_lower:
-            continue
-        to_queue.append({
-            "term": t,
             "source": "induction",
-            "added_at": now,
+            "source_call_ids": _find_source_calls(p["term"], sampled_call_docs),
-            "source_call_ids": _find_source_calls(t, sampled_call_docs),
+        }
-        })
+        for p in proposed
-    if not to_queue:
+        if p.get("term") and p["term"].lower() not in known
-        return
+    ]
-
+    if entries:
-    await fstore.doc_set("systems", system_id, {
+        await area_context.add_pending(system_id, talkgroup_id, entries)
-        "vocabulary_pending": existing_pending + to_queue,
-    })
-    logger.info(
-        f"Vocabulary induction: {len(to_queue)} new term(s) proposed for "
-        f"system {system_id} ({system_name}): {[p['term'] for p in to_queue]}"
-    )
 
 
 # ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -441,8 +496,13 @@ def _sync_bootstrap(system_name: str, system_type: str, area_hint: str) -> list[
 
 
 def _sync_induct(
-    system_name: str, existing_vocab: list[str], transcript_block: str
+    system_name: str,
-) -> list[str]:
+    talkgroup_name: str,
+    area_hint: str,
+    existing_vocab: list[str],
+    transcript_block: str,
+) -> list[dict]:
+    """Returns [{term, meaning}] — a bare string is still accepted from the model."""
     from app.config import settings as cfg
     from openai import OpenAI
 
@@ -452,6 +512,8 @@ def _sync_induct(
     vocab_str = ", ".join(existing_vocab[:80]) if existing_vocab else "(none yet)"
     prompt = _INDUCTION_PROMPT.format(
         system_name=system_name,
+        talkgroup_name=talkgroup_name,
+        area_hint=area_hint,
         existing_vocab=vocab_str,
         transcript_block=transcript_block[:8000],
     )
@@ -463,8 +525,7 @@ def _sync_induct(
             response_format={"type": "json_object"},
         )
         data = json.loads(response.choices[0].message.content)
-        terms = data.get("new_terms") or []
+        return area_context.normalize_local_knowledge(data.get("new_terms") or [])
-        return [str(t).strip() for t in terms if str(t).strip()]
     except Exception as e:
         logger.warning(f"Vocabulary induction GPT call failed: {e}")
         return []

drb-c2-core/app/models.py

@@ -78,6 +78,49 @@ class CommandPayload(BaseModel):
 # Systems
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
+class LocalKnowledgeEntry(BaseModel):
+    """A local name and what it is. Both scopes, one shape (server-26#36)."""
+    term: str
+    meaning: Optional[str] = None
+
+
+class AreaContextBody(BaseModel):
+    """
+    Ground truth about the area a system or talkgroup covers.
+
+    Every field is nullable on purpose: which SCOPE an operator fills is their
+    declaration of how homogeneous the system is. A single-municipality system
+    is described once at system level and inherited by every talkgroup; a
+    statewide one is left null there and described per talkgroup. See
+    `internal/area_context.py` for the merge rules and the anchor.
+
+    `center`/`radius_km`/`resolved_from`/`resolved_at` are absent here by
+    design — the backend geocodes and writes those. A client that sends them is
+    ignored.
+    """
+    municipality: Optional[str] = None
+    county: Optional[str] = None
+    state: Optional[str] = None
+    local_knowledge: List[LocalKnowledgeEntry] = []
+
+
+class TalkgroupEntry(BaseModel):
+    """
+    One entry in `config.talkgroups[]`.
+
+    Declared so the talkgroup copy of `area_context` stops being unvalidated
+    JSON riding inside the config blob — it is the same shape as the system's
+    and gets the same validator (server-26#36).
+    """
+    model_config = {"extra": "allow"}
+
+    id: int
+    name: str = ""
+    tag: str = "other"
+    vocabulary: List[str] = []
+    area_context: Optional[AreaContextBody] = None
+
+
 class SystemRecord(BaseModel):
     system_id: str
     org_id: Optional[str] = None
@@ -86,9 +129,10 @@ class SystemRecord(BaseModel):
     config: Dict[str, Any] = {}     # OP25-compatible config blob
     ten_codes: Dict[str, str] = {}  # {"10-10": "Commercial Alarm", ...}
     # Ground truth about the area this system covers, fed to the transcript
-    # corrector (server-26#36): {municipality, county, roads[], landmarks[]}.
+    # corrector and the place verifier (server-26#36 / #37). Shape is
-    # Per-talkgroup overrides live inside config.talkgroups[] and rank ABOVE
+    # AreaContextBody plus the backend-owned anchor. Per-talkgroup overrides
-    # this, so a multi-county system can narrow per channel.
+    # live inside config.talkgroups[] and rank ABOVE this, so a multi-county
+    # system narrows per channel rather than replacing this wholesale.
     area_context: Dict[str, Any] = {}
 
 

drb-c2-core/app/routers/systems.py

@@ -2,8 +2,9 @@ import uuid
 from fastapi import APIRouter, HTTPException, Depends, Query
 from pydantic import BaseModel
 from typing import Dict, List, Optional
-from app.models import SystemCreate, SystemRecord
+from app.models import AreaContextBody, SystemCreate, SystemRecord
 from app.internal import firestore as fstore
+from app.internal import area_context as area_ctx
 from app.internal.auth import (
     require_admin_token,
     require_node_service_or_firebase_token,
@@ -23,12 +24,9 @@ class TenCodesBody(BaseModel):
     ten_codes: Dict[str, str]
 
 
-class AreaContextBody(BaseModel):
+class PendingTermBody(BaseModel):
-    """Ground truth about the area a system covers — see PUT /{id}/area-context."""
+    talkgroup_id: int
-    municipality: Optional[str] = None
+    term: str
-    county: Optional[str] = None
-    roads: List[str] = []
-    landmarks: List[str] = []
 
 
 class AiFlagsBody(BaseModel):
@@ -78,7 +76,21 @@ async def update_system(system_id: str, body: SystemCreate, _: dict = Depends(re
     # save — they are edited through PUT /{id}/ten-codes and were never in this
     # payload. area_context (server-26#36) would have been the second casualty.
     patch = body.model_dump(exclude_unset=True)
+    # The form sends config.talkgroups[] in full, which would erase the resolved
+    # anchor and the pending-term queue the backend put there. Same class of bug
+    # as ten_codes above; the backend merges its own fields back rather than
+    # taking dictation from the client (server-26#36).
+    if "config" in patch:
+        patch["config"] = area_ctx.merge_config(patch["config"], existing.get("config"))
+    if "area_context" in patch:
+        patch["area_context"] = area_ctx.merge_server_fields(
+            area_ctx.normalize(patch["area_context"]), existing.get("area_context")
+        )
     await fstore.doc_update("systems", system_id, patch)
+    # Geocoding the anchor is a write-time job — a place changes when someone
+    # edits a town name, not every five minutes — but the operator should not
+    # wait on Maps to see their save land.
+    area_ctx.schedule_refresh(system_id)
     return {**existing, **patch}
 
 
@@ -160,12 +172,17 @@ async def update_area_context(
     _: dict = Depends(require_admin_token),
 ):
     """
-    Replace the system-wide area context used by the transcript corrector.
+    Replace the system-wide area context used by the corrector and the verifier.
 
-    Ground truth about where this system operates — municipality, county, the
+    Ground truth about where this system operates — municipality, county, state,
-    roads and landmarks whose names Whisper mangles. Per-talkgroup overrides
+    and the local names whose sound Whisper mangles. Per-talkgroup overrides live
-    live inside config.talkgroups[] and rank ABOVE this (server-26#36), so a
+    inside config.talkgroups[] and rank ABOVE this (server-26#36), so a
     multi-county system narrows per channel rather than replacing this wholesale.
+    Leaving it entirely empty is legitimate and meaningful: it says nothing here
+    is true of every talkgroup.
+
+    The derived anchor (`center`, `radius_km`, `resolved_from`, `resolved_at`) is
+    never taken from the body — it is carried forward and then recomputed here.
 
     Its own route rather than a field on PUT /systems/{id} for the same reason
     ten-codes has one: the systems form does not carry it, and folding it into
@@ -174,11 +191,69 @@ async def update_area_context(
     existing = await fstore.doc_get("systems", system_id)
     if not existing:
         raise HTTPException(404, f"System '{system_id}' not found.")
-    area = body.model_dump(exclude_none=True)
+    area = area_ctx.merge_server_fields(
+        area_ctx.normalize(body.model_dump(exclude_none=True)),
+        existing.get("area_context"),
+    )
     await fstore.doc_update("systems", system_id, {"area_context": area})
+    # Awaited, not scheduled: this route exists to edit the place, so the caller
+    # should get back the anchor its edit produced. Talkgroups are refreshed with
+    # it because their anchor derives from the merged place, not their own.
+    patch = await area_ctx.refresh_anchors({**existing, "area_context": area})
+    if patch:
+        await fstore.doc_update("systems", system_id, patch)
+        area = patch.get("area_context", area)
     return {"ok": True, "area_context": area}
 
 
+# -- Talkgroup-level pending local knowledge (server-26#37) --------------------
+
+@router.get("/{system_id}/talkgroup-pending")
+async def list_talkgroup_pending(system_id: str, _: dict = Depends(require_admin_token)):
+    """
+    Every pending local-knowledge proposal on this system, by talkgroup.
+
+    Proposals are made at talkgroup level and are never promoted to the system
+    automatically — a wrong term on one channel misleads one channel, the same
+    term system-wide misleads every channel on it.
+    """
+    system = await fstore.doc_get("systems", system_id)
+    if not system:
+        raise HTTPException(404, f"System '{system_id}' not found.")
+    out = []
+    for tg in ((system.get("config") or {}).get("talkgroups") or []):
+        if not isinstance(tg, dict):
+            continue
+        pending = tg.get(area_ctx.PENDING_KEY) or []
+        if pending:
+            out.append({
+                "talkgroup_id": tg.get("id"),
+                "talkgroup_name": tg.get("name"),
+                "pending": pending,
+            })
+    return {"talkgroups": out}
+
+
+@router.post("/{system_id}/talkgroup-pending/approve")
+async def approve_talkgroup_pending(
+    system_id: str, body: PendingTermBody, _: dict = Depends(require_admin_token)
+):
+    """Move a pending term into that talkgroup's local_knowledge."""
+    if not await area_ctx.resolve_pending(system_id, body.talkgroup_id, body.term, approve=True):
+        raise HTTPException(404, "No such pending term on that talkgroup.")
+    return {"ok": True}
+
+
+@router.post("/{system_id}/talkgroup-pending/dismiss")
+async def dismiss_talkgroup_pending(
+    system_id: str, body: PendingTermBody, _: dict = Depends(require_admin_token)
+):
+    """Drop a pending term without adding it."""
+    if not await area_ctx.resolve_pending(system_id, body.talkgroup_id, body.term, approve=False):
+        raise HTTPException(404, "No such pending term on that talkgroup.")
+    return {"ok": True}
+
+
 # ── Vocabulary endpoints ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 @router.get("/{system_id}/vocabulary")

drb-c2-core/tests/test_area_context.py

@@ -0,0 +1,305 @@
+"""
+Unit tests for the area_context schema and anchor (server-26#36).
+
+Three properties carry the real risk:
+
+  * NULLABILITY IS THE MECHANISM. Which scope an operator fills is their
+    declaration of how homogeneous the system is. Merging must let a talkgroup
+    narrow the system without dropping what the system already said — a
+    talkgroup that sets only a town must still inherit the state, or "Ossining"
+    is nationally ambiguous again.
+
+  * NO ANCHOR IS BETTER THAN A USELESS ONE. An anchor wider than
+    area_anchor_max_radius_km, or one whose resolved_from no longer matches the
+    place it came from, must read as ABSENT. Verification then skips. Treating
+    either as usable would rubber-stamp any location while looking like a check.
+
+  * THE CLIENT DOES NOT WRITE SERVER FIELDS. The systems form sends
+    config.talkgroups[] in full; taking it verbatim destroys the resolved anchor
+    and the pending queue, which is the same bug as the ten_codes wipe.
+"""
+import pytest
+from unittest.mock import AsyncMock, patch
+
+from app.internal import area_context as ac
+
+SYSTEM_AREA = {
+    "county": "Westchester",
+    "state": "New York",
+    "local_knowledge": [{"term": "Route 9", "meaning": "state highway"}],
+    "center": {"lat": 41.1, "lng": -73.8},
+    "radius_km": 30.0,
+    "resolved_from": "|westchester|new york",
+    "resolved_at": "2026-08-23T00:00:00+00:00",
+}
+
+TG_AREA = {
+    "municipality": "Ossining",
+    "local_knowledge": [{"term": "Sing Sing", "meaning": "state prison"}],
+    "center": {"lat": 41.16, "lng": -73.86},
+    "radius_km": 6.0,
+    "resolved_from": "ossining|westchester|new york",
+    "resolved_at": "2026-08-23T00:00:00+00:00",
+}
+
+
+# -- Merging -------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def test_talkgroup_narrows_without_dropping_the_system():
+    merged = ac.effective(SYSTEM_AREA, TG_AREA)
+    assert merged["municipality"] == "Ossining"
+    assert merged["county"] == "Westchester"
+    assert merged["state"] == "New York", "the state must survive the narrowing"
+
+
+def test_talkgroup_knowledge_ranks_first_and_dedupes():
+    system = {"local_knowledge": [{"term": "Route 9"}, {"term": "Metro-North"}]}
+    tg = {"local_knowledge": [{"term": "route 9", "meaning": "the local name"}]}
+    merged = ac.effective(system, tg)
+    assert [e["term"] for e in merged["local_knowledge"]] == ["route 9", "Metro-North"]
+    assert merged["local_knowledge"][0]["meaning"] == "the local name"
+
+
+def test_empty_at_both_scopes_is_legal():
+    assert ac.effective(None, None) == {}
+    assert ac.effective({}, {}) == {}
+
+
+def test_bare_strings_are_accepted_as_terms():
+    """roads[]/landmarks[] from the old shape, and anything a model returns."""
+    assert ac.normalize_local_knowledge(["Route 9", "", "Route 9", 7]) == [{"term": "Route 9"}]
+
+
+def test_pre_36_roads_and_landmarks_are_read_forward():
+    """
+    Real systems still have the old shape stored. Dropping it the day this
+    shipped would silently discard ground truth an operator already entered.
+    """
+    legacy = {"county": "Westchester", "roads": ["Route 9"], "landmarks": ["Sing Sing"]}
+    merged = ac.effective(legacy, None)
+    assert [e["term"] for e in merged["local_knowledge"]] == ["Route 9", "Sing Sing"]
+    assert ac.normalize(legacy) == {
+        "county": "Westchester",
+        "local_knowledge": [{"term": "Route 9"}, {"term": "Sing Sing"}],
+    }, "and the next save writes them in the new shape"
+
+
+def test_normalize_drops_client_sent_server_fields():
+    out = ac.normalize({"municipality": " Ossining ", "radius_km": 5000, "center": {"lat": 0}})
+    assert out == {"municipality": "Ossining"}
+
+
+# -- Anchor selection ----------------------------------------------------------
+
+def test_talkgroup_anchor_wins():
+    anchor = ac.anchor_for(SYSTEM_AREA, TG_AREA)
+    assert anchor == {"lat": 41.16, "lng": -73.86, "radius_km": 6.0}
+
+
+def test_system_anchor_used_when_talkgroup_sets_no_place():
+    anchor = ac.anchor_for(SYSTEM_AREA, {"local_knowledge": [{"term": "Post 4"}]})
+    assert anchor == {"lat": 41.1, "lng": -73.8, "radius_km": 30.0}
+
+
+def test_no_anchor_when_nothing_is_configured():
+    assert ac.anchor_for({}, {}) is None
+
+
+def test_stale_anchor_reads_as_absent():
+    """
+    Someone edited the town and the refresh has not run yet. The stored centre
+    is for the OLD place, so using it would validate locations against an area
+    the channel no longer covers.
+    """
+    stale = {**TG_AREA, "municipality": "Croton"}
+    assert ac.anchor_for(SYSTEM_AREA, stale) is None
+
+
+def test_anchor_key_ignores_case_and_padding():
+    assert ac.anchor_key({"municipality": " OSSINING "}) == ac.anchor_key({"municipality": "ossining"})
+
+
+# -- Anchor resolution ---------------------------------------------------------
+
+def _maps(viewport_span_deg: float):
+    """A geocode response whose viewport spans roughly the given degrees."""
+    payload = {
+        "status": "OK",
+        "results": [{
+            "geometry": {
+                "location": {"lat": 41.0, "lng": -73.0},
+                "viewport": {
+                    "northeast": {"lat": 41.0 + viewport_span_deg, "lng": -73.0 + viewport_span_deg},
+                    "southwest": {"lat": 41.0 - viewport_span_deg, "lng": -73.0 - viewport_span_deg},
+                },
+            }
+        }],
+    }
+
+    class _Resp:
+        def raise_for_status(self): pass
+        def json(self): return payload
+
+    class _Client:
+        async def __aenter__(self): return self
+        async def __aexit__(self, *a): return False
+        async def get(self, *a, **k): return _Resp()
+
+    return patch("httpx.AsyncClient", lambda *a, **k: _Client())
+
+
+@pytest.fixture(autouse=True)
+def _clear_cache():
+    ac._anchor_cache.clear()
+    with patch.object(ac.settings, "google_maps_api_key", "test-key"):
+        yield
+    ac._anchor_cache.clear()
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_small_place_produces_an_anchor():
+    with _maps(0.05):
+        anchor = await ac.resolve_anchor({"municipality": "Ossining", "state": "New York"})
+    assert anchor is not None
+    assert anchor["radius_km"] < 10
+    assert anchor["resolved_from"] == "ossining||new york"
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_statewide_place_produces_no_anchor():
+    """
+    A radius that covers a state would confirm any location inside it. Storing
+    it would make the geocode check worse than useless — it would look like
+    verification and pass everything.
+    """
+    with _maps(4.0), patch.object(ac.settings, "area_anchor_max_radius_km", 60.0):
+        assert await ac.resolve_anchor({"state": "Colorado"}) is None
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_no_place_never_calls_maps():
+    with patch("httpx.AsyncClient") as client:
+        assert await ac.resolve_anchor({"local_knowledge": [{"term": "Post 4"}]}) is None
+    client.assert_not_called()
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_refresh_skips_scopes_whose_place_is_unchanged():
+    doc = {"area_context": SYSTEM_AREA, "config": {"talkgroups": [{"id": 1, "area_context": TG_AREA}]}}
+    with patch("httpx.AsyncClient") as client:
+        assert await ac.refresh_anchors(doc) == {}
+    client.assert_not_called()
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_editing_the_system_place_re_anchors_its_talkgroups():
+    """
+    A talkgroup's anchor derives from its EFFECTIVE place, so changing the
+    system's county silently changes what every talkgroup should be anchored to.
+    """
+    doc = {
+        "area_context": {"county": "Putnam", "state": "New York"},
+        "config": {"talkgroups": [{"id": 1, "area_context": {"municipality": "Ossining"}}]},
+    }
+    with _maps(0.05):
+        patch_out = await ac.refresh_anchors(doc)
+    tg = patch_out["config"]["talkgroups"][0]
+    assert tg["area_context"]["resolved_from"] == "ossining|putnam|new york"
+    assert tg["area_context"]["center"]["lat"] == 41.0
+
+
+# -- Client writes -------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def test_merge_config_preserves_the_anchor_and_the_pending_queue():
+    existing = {"talkgroups": [{
+        "id": 9048,
+        "area_context": TG_AREA,
+        ac.PENDING_KEY: [{"term": "Snowden Avenue"}],
+    }]}
+    # What the systems form actually sends: no anchor, no pending queue.
+    incoming = {"talkgroups": [{"id": 9048, "name": "Ossining PD",
+                                "area_context": {"municipality": "Ossining"}}]}
+    merged = ac.merge_config(incoming, existing)
+    tg = merged["talkgroups"][0]
+    assert tg["area_context"]["center"] == TG_AREA["center"]
+    assert tg[ac.PENDING_KEY] == [{"term": "Snowden Avenue"}]
+    assert tg["name"] == "Ossining PD", "the client still owns the fields it owns"
+
+
+def test_merge_config_drops_an_emptied_area():
+    existing = {"talkgroups": [{"id": 1, "area_context": TG_AREA}]}
+    merged = ac.merge_config({"talkgroups": [{"id": 1}]}, existing)
+    assert "area_context" not in merged["talkgroups"][0]
+
+
+# -- Pending terms -------------------------------------------------------------
+
+def _store(doc):
+    saved = {}
+
+    async def _get(_col, _id):
+        return doc
+
+    async def _update(_col, _id, patch):
+        saved.update(patch)
+
+    return saved, patch.multiple(
+        "app.internal.firestore", doc_get=AsyncMock(side_effect=_get),
+        doc_update=AsyncMock(side_effect=_update),
+    )
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_pending_terms_land_on_the_talkgroup():
+    doc = {"config": {"talkgroups": [{"id": 9048}]}, "vocabulary": []}
+    saved, store = _store(doc)
+    with store:
+        assert await ac.add_pending("sys-1", 9048, [{"term": "Snowden Avenue"}]) == 1
+    assert saved["config"]["talkgroups"][0][ac.PENDING_KEY][0]["term"] == "Snowden Avenue"
+    assert "vocabulary" not in saved, "nothing writes to the system"
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_already_known_terms_are_not_re_proposed():
+    doc = {
+        "vocabulary": ["Metro-North"],
+        "area_context": {"local_knowledge": [{"term": "Route 9"}]},
+        "config": {"talkgroups": [{"id": 9048, "local_knowledge_pending": [{"term": "Sing Sing"}]}]},
+    }
+    saved, store = _store(doc)
+    with store:
+        queued = await ac.add_pending("sys-1", 9048, [
+            {"term": "route 9"}, {"term": "Metro-North"}, {"term": "sing sing"},
+        ])
+    assert queued == 0
+    assert saved == {}
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_approving_writes_to_the_talkgroup_and_never_the_system():
+    """
+    Blast radius: the same term at system level misleads every channel on the
+    system, including one 400km away on a statewide system.
+    """
+    doc = {"config": {"talkgroups": [{"id": 9048, ac.PENDING_KEY: [
+        {"term": "Snowden Avenue", "meaning": "residential street"}]}]}}
+    saved, store = _store(doc)
+    with store:
+        assert await ac.resolve_pending("sys-1", 9048, "snowden avenue", approve=True) is True
+    tg = saved["config"]["talkgroups"][0]
+    assert tg["area_context"]["local_knowledge"] == [
+        {"term": "Snowden Avenue", "meaning": "residential street"}
+    ]
+    assert tg[ac.PENDING_KEY] == []
+    assert "vocabulary" not in saved and "area_context" not in saved
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_dismissing_adds_nothing():
+    doc = {"config": {"talkgroups": [{"id": 9048, ac.PENDING_KEY: [{"term": "Optum"}]}]}}
+    saved, store = _store(doc)
+    with store:
+        assert await ac.resolve_pending("sys-1", 9048, "Optum", approve=False) is True
+    tg = saved["config"]["talkgroups"][0]
+    assert tg[ac.PENDING_KEY] == []
+    assert not (tg.get("area_context") or {}).get("local_knowledge")

drb-c2-core/tests/test_place_verifier.py

@@ -0,0 +1,192 @@
+"""
+Unit tests for Maps-based place verification (server-26#37).
+
+The property that matters most is the one that looks like a no-op: WITHOUT AN
+ANCHOR, NOTHING HAPPENS. A system whose area is too wide to discriminate stores
+no anchor, and verification must then skip entirely rather than accept whatever
+geocodes. A check that passes everything is worse than no check, because it
+reads as verification in the logs and in the data.
+
+After that: a candidate may only rewrite a transcript if it actually sounds like
+what was heard. Places Text Search will return the nearest plausible business
+for any garbage string, so the API answering at all is not evidence.
+"""
+import pytest
+from unittest.mock import AsyncMock, patch
+
+from app.internal import place_verifier as pv
+
+ANCHOR_AREA = {
+    "municipality": "Ossining",
+    "county": "Westchester",
+    "state": "New York",
+    "local_knowledge": [{"term": "Snowden Avenue", "meaning": "residential street"}],
+    "center": {"lat": 41.16, "lng": -73.86},
+    "radius_km": 6.0,
+    "resolved_from": "ossining|westchester|new york",
+}
+
+SEGS = [{"start": 0.0, "end": 1.0, "text": "Shout out to Optum."},
+        {"start": 1.0, "end": 2.0, "text": "Copy that."}]
+
+
+@pytest.fixture(autouse=True)
+def _enabled():
+    with patch.object(pv.settings, "place_verification_enabled", True), \
+         patch.object(pv.settings, "google_maps_api_key", "test-key"):
+        yield
+
+
+def _geocode(result):
+    return patch.object(pv, "_geocode_in_anchor", AsyncMock(return_value=result))
+
+
+def _places(result):
+    return patch.object(pv, "_places_soundalike", AsyncMock(return_value=result))
+
+
+# -- Phonetics -----------------------------------------------------------------
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("heard, real", [
+    ("Snowden Avenue", "Snowdon Ave"),
+    ("5 acre", "5-baker"),
+    ("why vac", "YVAC"),
+    ("Croton Ave", "Croton Avenue"),
+])
+def test_real_mishearings_score_above_the_threshold(heard, real):
+    assert pv.sounds_like(heard, real) >= pv.settings.place_soundalike_min_ratio
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("heard, unrelated", [
+    ("Optum", "Ossining"),
+    ("Cool Parts", "Croton Point"),
+])
+def test_unrelated_names_score_below_it(heard, unrelated):
+    assert pv.sounds_like(heard, unrelated) < pv.settings.place_soundalike_min_ratio
+
+
+# -- The skip path -------------------------------------------------------------
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_no_anchor_means_skip_not_accept():
+    """A statewide system stores no anchor. Nothing may be checked or rewritten."""
+    with patch.object(pv, "_geocode_in_anchor") as geo:
+        out = await pv.verify("c1", "text here", SEGS, ["Optum"], {"state": "Colorado"}, {})
+    assert out == (None, None)
+    geo.assert_not_called()
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_no_locations_means_no_requests():
+    with patch.object(pv, "_geocode_in_anchor") as geo:
+        assert await pv.verify("c1", "t", None, [], ANCHOR_AREA, {}) == (None, None)
+    geo.assert_not_called()
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_disabled_by_setting():
+    with patch.object(pv.settings, "place_verification_enabled", False), \
+         patch.object(pv, "_geocode_in_anchor") as geo:
+        assert await pv.verify("c1", "t", None, ["Optum"], ANCHOR_AREA, {}) == (None, None)
+    geo.assert_not_called()
+
+
+# -- The accept path -----------------------------------------------------------
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_a_place_that_resolves_inside_the_anchor_is_left_alone():
+    with _geocode({"lat": 41.16, "lng": -73.86}), _places(None) as places:
+        out = await pv.verify("c1", "Units to Snowden Avenue.", None,
+                              ["Snowden Avenue"], ANCHOR_AREA, {})
+    assert out == (None, None)
+    places.assert_not_called()  # a hit must not cost a second request
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_the_query_carries_the_full_place():
+    seen = {}
+
+    async def capture(query, anchor):
+        seen["query"] = query
+        return {"lat": 41.16, "lng": -73.86}
+
+    with patch.object(pv, "_geocode_in_anchor", capture):
+        await pv.verify("c1", "t", None, ["High Street"], ANCHOR_AREA, {})
+    assert seen["query"] == "High Street, Ossining, Westchester, New York"
+
+
+# -- The correction path -------------------------------------------------------
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_known_term_is_preferred_and_costs_nothing():
+    """
+    A sound-alike the operator already entered is both free and more trustworthy
+    than anything Maps guesses, so it must be tried before any request goes out.
+    """
+    with _geocode(None), _places(None) as places, \
+         patch.object(pv.area_context, "add_pending", AsyncMock()) as add:
+        text, segs = await pv.verify(
+            "c1", "Units to Snowdon Ave.", None, ["Snowdon Ave"], ANCHOR_AREA, {}
+        )
+    assert text == "Units to Snowden Avenue."
+    places.assert_not_called()
+    add.assert_not_called()  # already known — nothing to propose
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_a_maps_soundalike_is_applied_and_proposed_to_the_talkgroup():
+    candidate = {"term": "Croton Point", "meaning": "Croton Point Ave, Croton NY", "score": 0.8}
+    with _geocode(None), _places(candidate), \
+         patch.object(pv.area_context, "add_pending", AsyncMock(return_value=1)) as add:
+        text, segs = await pv.verify(
+            "c1", "Respond to Cool Parts.", None, ["Cool Parts"], ANCHOR_AREA, {},
+            system_id="sys-1", talkgroup_id=9048,
+        )
+    assert text == "Respond to Croton Point."
+    args = add.await_args.args
+    assert args[0] == "sys-1" and args[1] == 9048
+    assert args[2][0]["term"] == "Croton Point"
+    assert args[2][0]["source_call_ids"] == ["c1"]
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_nothing_plausible_leaves_the_transcript_untouched():
+    """
+    An invented name with no real counterpart nearby stays as it is. Guessing
+    would put a fabricated location into the incident record, which is the
+    outcome this whole pass exists to avoid.
+    """
+    with _geocode(None), _places(None):
+        assert await pv.verify("c1", "Shout out to Optum.", SEGS,
+                               ["Optum"], ANCHOR_AREA, {}) == (None, None)
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_segments_are_corrected_alongside_the_joined_text():
+    """Extraction reads numbered segments, so a joined-only fix reaches nothing."""
+    with _geocode(None), _places(None), \
+         patch.object(pv.area_context, "add_pending", AsyncMock()):
+        text, segs = await pv.verify(
+            "c1", "Shout out to Snowdon Ave. Copy that.",
+            [{"start": 0.0, "end": 1.0, "text": "Shout out to Snowdon Ave."},
+             {"start": 1.0, "end": 2.0, "text": "Copy that."}],
+            ["Snowdon Ave"], ANCHOR_AREA, {},
+        )
+    assert segs is not None
+    assert segs[0]["text"] == "Shout out to Snowden Avenue."
+    assert segs[0]["start"] == 0.0, "timing survives untouched"
+    assert segs[1]["text"] == "Copy that."
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_a_geocoder_failure_never_breaks_the_transcript():
+    with patch.object(pv, "_geocode_in_anchor", AsyncMock(side_effect=RuntimeError("boom"))):
+        assert await pv.verify("c1", "t here", None, ["Optum"], ANCHOR_AREA, {}) == (None, None)
+
+
+@pytest.mark.asyncio
+async def test_only_a_bounded_number_of_nouns_is_checked():
+    with patch.object(pv.settings, "place_verify_max_per_call", 2), \
+         patch.object(pv, "_geocode_in_anchor", AsyncMock(return_value={"lat": 41.16, "lng": -73.86})) as geo:
+        await pv.verify("c1", "t", None, ["a", "b", "c", "d"], ANCHOR_AREA, {})
+    assert geo.await_count == 2

drb-c2-core/tests/test_transcript_correction.py

@@ -21,14 +21,24 @@ from app.internal import transcript_correction as tc
 SYSTEM = {
     "vocabulary": ["Croton-Harmon", "Metro-North"],
     "ten_codes": {"10-4": "acknowledged", "10-13": "officer needs assistance"},
-    "area_context": {"county": "Westchester", "roads": ["Route 9", "Saw Mill Parkway"]},
+    "area_context": {
+        "county": "Westchester",
+        "state": "New York",
+        "local_knowledge": [
+            {"term": "Route 9", "meaning": "north-south state highway"},
+            {"term": "Saw Mill Parkway"},
+        ],
+    },
     "config": {
         "talkgroups": [
             {
                 "id": 9048,
                 "name": "Ossining - Police Dispatch",
                 "vocabulary": ["Snowden Avenue", "Croton-Harmon"],
-                "area_context": {"municipality": "Ossining", "landmarks": ["Sing Sing"]},
+                "area_context": {
+                    "municipality": "Ossining",
+                    "local_knowledge": [{"term": "Sing Sing", "meaning": "state prison"}],
+                },
             },
             {"id": 9600, "name": "Harrison - Police/EMS Dispatch"},
             {"id": 9563, "ten_codes": {"10-4": "on scene"}},
@@ -83,6 +93,7 @@ async def test_talkgroup_without_own_data_inherits_system():
         ctx = await tc.resolve_context("sys-1", 9600)
     assert ctx["vocabulary"] == ["Croton-Harmon", "Metro-North"]
     assert any("Westchester" in line for line in ctx["area_lines"])
+    assert ctx["area"].get("municipality") is None, "inherits, invents nothing"
 
 
 @pytest.mark.asyncio
@@ -105,7 +116,10 @@ async def test_missing_scope_is_not_an_error(system_id, tgid):
 async def test_unconfigured_system_yields_empty_context():
     with _system(doc=None):
         ctx = await tc.resolve_context("sys-1", 9048)
-    assert ctx == {"vocabulary": [], "ten_codes": {}, "area_lines": []}
+    assert ctx == {
+        "vocabulary": [], "ten_codes": {}, "area_lines": [],
+        "area": {}, "system_area": {}, "tg_area": {},
+    }
 
 
 # ── Correction behaviour ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
@@ -207,5 +221,7 @@ async def test_reference_data_reaches_the_prompt():
         await tc.correct("c1", "x y z w", None, system_id="sys-1",
                          talkgroup_id=9048, talkgroup_name="Ossining - Police Dispatch")
     p = seen["prompt"]
-    assert "Snowden Avenue" in p and "Sing Sing" in p and "Ossining - Police Dispatch" in p
+    assert "Snowden Avenue" in p and "Ossining - Police Dispatch" in p
+    assert "Sing Sing — state prison" in p, "a term without its meaning is half the information"
+    assert "Ossining, Westchester, New York" in p, "state must reach the prompt (server-26#36)"
     assert "10-13=officer needs assistance" in p

drb-frontend/app/systems/page.tsx

@@ -5,7 +5,13 @@ import { useRouter } from "next/navigation";
 import { useSystems } from "@/lib/useSystems";
 import { c2api } from "@/lib/c2api";
 import { useAuth } from "@/components/AuthProvider";
-import type { AreaContext, SystemRecord, VocabularyPendingTerm } from "@/lib/types";
+import type {
+  AreaContext,
+  LocalKnowledgeEntry,
+  SystemRecord,
+  TalkgroupPending,
+  VocabularyPendingTerm,
+} from "@/lib/types";
 
 // ── P25 structured config types ───────────────────────────────────────────────
 
@@ -25,17 +31,77 @@ const listToText = (v?: string[]) => (v ?? []).join(", ");
 const textToList = (v: string) =>
   v.split(",").map((x) => x.trim()).filter(Boolean);
 
-/** Drop an area_context whose every field is blank, so we don't store noise. */
+/**
+ * Local knowledge is one entry per line, `term — meaning`.
+ *
+ * A bare term is valid — half the information is still worth having, and
+ * forcing a meaning would make people invent one. An em dash, a spaced hyphen
+ * or an equals sign all separate; whichever comes first wins.
+ */
+const knowledgeToText = (v?: LocalKnowledgeEntry[]) =>
+  (v ?? []).map((e) => (e.meaning ? `${e.term} — ${e.meaning}` : e.term)).join("\n");
+
+function textToKnowledge(v: string): LocalKnowledgeEntry[] {
+  const out: LocalKnowledgeEntry[] = [];
+  for (const line of v.split("\n")) {
+    const match = line.match(/^(.*?)\s*(?:—|–|\s-\s|=)\s*(.*)$/);
+    const term = (match ? match[1] : line).trim();
+    const meaning = match ? match[2].trim() : "";
+    if (term) out.push(meaning ? { term, meaning } : { term });
+  }
+  return out;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Fold the pre-#36 shape forward on load.
+ *
+ * `roads[]` and `landmarks[]` were the original fields and real systems still
+ * have them stored. Showing them as local-knowledge lines means an operator
+ * sees what they already entered instead of an empty box, and the next save
+ * writes them in the new shape.
+ */
+function migrateArea(a?: AreaContext & { roads?: string[]; landmarks?: string[] }): AreaContext {
+  if (!a) return {};
+  const legacy = [...(a.roads ?? []), ...(a.landmarks ?? [])].map((term) => ({ term }));
+  if (!legacy.length) return a;
+  const seen = new Set((a.local_knowledge ?? []).map((e) => e.term.toLowerCase()));
+  const { roads: _roads, landmarks: _landmarks, ...rest } = a;
+  return {
+    ...rest,
+    local_knowledge: [
+      ...(a.local_knowledge ?? []),
+      ...legacy.filter((e) => !seen.has(e.term.toLowerCase())),
+    ],
+  };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Drop an area_context whose every field is blank, so we don't store noise.
+ *
+ * Also strips the derived anchor: `center`/`radius_km`/`resolved_*` belong to
+ * the backend, which geocodes them from the place and merges them back. Sending
+ * them up would be the frontend deciding what is in a system document.
+ */
 function cleanArea(a?: AreaContext): AreaContext | undefined {
   if (!a) return undefined;
   const out: AreaContext = {};
   if (a.municipality?.trim()) out.municipality = a.municipality.trim();
   if (a.county?.trim()) out.county = a.county.trim();
-  if (a.roads?.length) out.roads = a.roads;
+  if (a.state?.trim()) out.state = a.state.trim();
-  if (a.landmarks?.length) out.landmarks = a.landmarks;
+  if (a.local_knowledge?.length) out.local_knowledge = a.local_knowledge;
   return Object.keys(out).length ? out : undefined;
 }
 
+/** What the backend resolved this area to, in one line. */
+function anchorLabel(a?: AreaContext): string {
+  if (!a) return "";
+  const place = [a.municipality, a.county, a.state].filter(Boolean).join(", ");
+  if (!place) return "no area set — location checking is off for this scope";
+  if (a.center && a.radius_km) return `anchored to ${place}, ${Math.round(a.radius_km)} km radius`;
+  if (a.resolved_from) return `${place} — too wide to check locations against, so that check is skipped`;
+  return `${place} — not yet resolved`;
+}
+
 interface P25Config {
   nac: string;
   system_id: string;
@@ -76,7 +142,7 @@ function recordToP25Config(c: Record<string, unknown>): P25Config {
           name: tg.name,
           tag: tg.tag ?? "other",
           vocabulary: tg.vocabulary ?? [],
-          area_context: tg.area_context ?? {},
+          area_context: migrateArea(tg.area_context),
         }))
       : [],
   };
@@ -359,27 +425,41 @@ function hasLocalKnowledge(tg: TalkgroupEntry): boolean {
   return Boolean((tg.vocabulary ?? []).length || cleanArea(tg.area_context));
 }
 
-/** One labelled text input in the local-knowledge grid. */
+/** One labelled field in the local-knowledge grid. */
 function LocalKnowledgeField({
   label,
   value,
   onChange,
   placeholder,
+  multiline,
 }: {
   label: string;
   value: string;
   onChange: (v: string) => void;
   placeholder?: string;
+  multiline?: boolean;
 }) {
+  const cls =
+    "w-full mt-0.5 bg-gray-900 border border-gray-700 rounded px-2 py-1 text-white text-xs focus:outline-none focus:border-indigo-500";
   return (
     <label className="block">
       <span className="text-xs text-gray-500 font-sans">{label}</span>
-      <input
+      {multiline ? (
-        value={value}
+        <textarea
-        onChange={(e) => onChange(e.target.value)}
+          value={value}
-        placeholder={placeholder}
+          onChange={(e) => onChange(e.target.value)}
-        className="w-full mt-0.5 bg-gray-900 border border-gray-700 rounded px-2 py-1 text-white text-xs focus:outline-none focus:border-indigo-500"
+          placeholder={placeholder}
-      />
+          rows={4}
+          className={`${cls} font-mono resize-y`}
+        />
+      ) : (
+        <input
+          value={value}
+          onChange={(e) => onChange(e.target.value)}
+          placeholder={placeholder}
+          className={cls}
+        />
+      )}
     </label>
   );
 }
@@ -404,17 +484,17 @@ function TalkgroupEditor({
     onChange([...talkgroups, { id: "", name: "", tag: "other" }]);
   }
 
-  function updateArea(i: number, field: "municipality" | "county", value: string) {
+  function updateArea(i: number, field: "municipality" | "county" | "state", value: string) {
     const updated = [...talkgroups];
     updated[i] = { ...updated[i], area_context: { ...updated[i].area_context, [field]: value } };
     onChange(updated);
   }
 
-  function updateAreaList(i: number, field: "roads" | "landmarks", value: string) {
+  function updateAreaKnowledge(i: number, value: string) {
     const updated = [...talkgroups];
     updated[i] = {
       ...updated[i],
-      area_context: { ...updated[i].area_context, [field]: textToList(value) },
+      area_context: { ...updated[i].area_context, local_knowledge: textToKnowledge(value) },
     };
     onChange(updated);
   }
@@ -642,17 +722,22 @@ function TalkgroupEditor({
                           placeholder="Westchester"
                         />
                         <LocalKnowledgeField
-                          label="Roads"
+                          label="State"
-                          value={listToText(tg.area_context?.roads)}
+                          value={tg.area_context?.state ?? ""}
-                          onChange={(v) => updateAreaList(i, "roads", v)}
+                          onChange={(v) => updateArea(i, "state", v)}
-                          placeholder="Route 9, Croton Ave"
+                          placeholder="New York"
-                        />
-                        <LocalKnowledgeField
-                          label="Landmarks & businesses"
-                          value={listToText(tg.area_context?.landmarks)}
-                          onChange={(v) => updateAreaList(i, "landmarks", v)}
-                          placeholder="Sing Sing, Phelps Hospital"
                         />
+                        <div className="md:col-span-2">
+                          <LocalKnowledgeField
+                            label="Local knowledge — one per line, term — what it is"
+                            multiline
+                            value={knowledgeToText(tg.area_context?.local_knowledge)}
+                            onChange={(v) => updateAreaKnowledge(i, v)}
+                            placeholder={
+                              "Snowden Avenue — residential street\nSing Sing — state prison\n11-X-ray — MTA PD patrol unit"
+                            }
+                          />
+                        </div>
                         <div className="md:col-span-2">
                           <LocalKnowledgeField
                             label="Unit call signs & local terms"
@@ -1169,7 +1254,7 @@ function AreaContextPanel({ systemId }: { systemId: string }) {
     setLoading(true);
     try {
       const data = await c2api.getAreaContext(systemId);
-      setArea(data.area_context ?? {});
+      setArea(migrateArea(data.area_context));
     } catch (e) {
       setError(String(e));
     } finally {
@@ -1182,7 +1267,11 @@ function AreaContextPanel({ systemId }: { systemId: string }) {
     setSaving(true);
     setError(null);
     try {
-      await c2api.updateAreaContext(systemId, area);
+      // The response carries the anchor this edit produced, so the readout
+      // below reflects what the backend actually resolved rather than what was
+      // typed.
+      const saved = await c2api.updateAreaContext(systemId, area);
+      setArea(saved.area_context ?? area);
     } catch (e) {
       setError(String(e));
     } finally {
@@ -1191,7 +1280,7 @@ function AreaContextPanel({ systemId }: { systemId: string }) {
   }
 
   const filled = area
-    ? [area.municipality, area.county, area.roads?.length, area.landmarks?.length].filter(Boolean).length
+    ? [area.municipality, area.county, area.state, area.local_knowledge?.length].filter(Boolean).length
     : 0;
 
   return (
@@ -1219,9 +1308,15 @@ function AreaContextPanel({ systemId }: { systemId: string }) {
               <p className="text-gray-500">
                 Given to the transcript corrector for every talkgroup on this system.
                 Whisper mishears local names constantly — naming them here is what lets
-                them be put back. Individual talkgroups can narrow this in the edit form.
+                them be put back.
               </p>
-              <div className="grid grid-cols-1 md:grid-cols-2 gap-2">
+              <p className="text-gray-500">
+                Fill this in <span className="text-gray-300">only if it is true of every
+                talkgroup</span> on the system. One town, one department — fill it once here.
+                A system spanning several counties — leave it blank and describe each
+                talkgroup in the edit form instead.
+              </p>
+              <div className="grid grid-cols-1 md:grid-cols-3 gap-2">
                 <LocalKnowledgeField
                   label="Municipality"
                   value={area.municipality ?? ""}
@@ -1235,18 +1330,25 @@ function AreaContextPanel({ systemId }: { systemId: string }) {
                   placeholder="Westchester"
                 />
                 <LocalKnowledgeField
-                  label="Roads"
+                  label="State"
-                  value={listToText(area.roads)}
+                  value={area.state ?? ""}
-                  onChange={(v) => setArea({ ...area, roads: textToList(v) })}
+                  onChange={(v) => setArea({ ...area, state: v })}
-                  placeholder="Route 9, Saw Mill Parkway"
+                  placeholder="New York"
-                />
-                <LocalKnowledgeField
-                  label="Landmarks & businesses"
-                  value={listToText(area.landmarks)}
-                  onChange={(v) => setArea({ ...area, landmarks: textToList(v) })}
-                  placeholder="Phelps Hospital, Metro-North station"
                 />
               </div>
+              <LocalKnowledgeField
+                label="Local knowledge — one per line, term — what it is"
+                multiline
+                value={knowledgeToText(area.local_knowledge)}
+                onChange={(v) => setArea({ ...area, local_knowledge: textToKnowledge(v) })}
+                placeholder={
+                  "Route 9 — main north-south highway\nPhelps — Phelps Hospital, Sleepy Hollow\nthe flats — low-lying area by the river"
+                }
+              />
+              {/* The anchor is the backend's answer to what was typed above, and
+                  it decides whether location checking runs at all — so it is
+                  worth showing rather than leaving as invisible state. */}
+              <p className="text-gray-600 font-mono">{anchorLabel(area)}</p>
               <button
                 type="button"
                 onClick={save}
@@ -1266,6 +1368,123 @@ function AreaContextPanel({ systemId }: { systemId: string }) {
 
 // ── Vocabulary panel ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
+/**
+ * Terms the place verifier and the induction loop proposed, per talkgroup.
+ *
+ * Approval is always a person's decision and always lands on the talkgroup that
+ * proposed it — nothing here promotes a term to the system (server-26#37). A
+ * wrong term on one channel misleads one channel; the same term system-wide
+ * misleads every channel on it, including one on the far side of a statewide
+ * system.
+ */
+function TalkgroupPendingPanel({ systemId }: { systemId: string }) {
+  const [open, setOpen]       = useState(false);
+  const [rows, setRows]       = useState<TalkgroupPending[] | null>(null);
+  const [busy, setBusy]       = useState<string | null>(null);
+  const [error, setError]     = useState<string | null>(null);
+
+  async function load() {
+    try {
+      const data = await c2api.getTalkgroupPending(systemId);
+      setRows(data.talkgroups ?? []);
+    } catch (e) {
+      setError(String(e));
+    }
+  }
+
+  async function toggle() {
+    const next = !open;
+    setOpen(next);
+    if (next && rows === null) await load();
+  }
+
+  async function act(talkgroupId: number, term: string, approve: boolean) {
+    setBusy(`${talkgroupId}:${term}`);
+    setError(null);
+    try {
+      if (approve) await c2api.approveTalkgroupTerm(systemId, talkgroupId, term);
+      else await c2api.dismissTalkgroupTerm(systemId, talkgroupId, term);
+      await load();
+    } catch (e) {
+      setError(String(e));
+    } finally {
+      setBusy(null);
+    }
+  }
+
+  const total = (rows ?? []).reduce((n, r) => n + r.pending.length, 0);
+
+  return (
+    <div className="mt-3 border-t border-gray-800 pt-3">
+      <button
+        onClick={toggle}
+        className="text-xs text-gray-500 hover:text-gray-300 font-mono transition-colors flex items-center gap-1"
+      >
+        <span>{open ? "▲" : "▼"}</span>
+        <span>
+          Proposed Terms
+          {rows !== null && (
+            <span className={total > 0 ? "text-indigo-400 ml-1" : "text-gray-600 ml-1"}>
+              ({total > 0 ? `${total} awaiting review` : "none"})
+            </span>
+          )}
+        </span>
+      </button>
+
+      {open && (
+        <div className="mt-3 space-y-3 text-xs">
+          {rows === null && <p className="text-gray-600 italic font-mono">Loading…</p>}
+          {rows !== null && total === 0 && (
+            <p className="text-gray-600 italic">
+              Nothing proposed yet. Terms appear here when a corrected place name
+              turns out to be real nearby, or when the induction loop spots one in
+              recent traffic.
+            </p>
+          )}
+          {(rows ?? []).map((row) => (
+            <div key={row.talkgroup_id}>
+              <p className="text-gray-400 font-mono mb-1">
+                {row.talkgroup_name || `TGID ${row.talkgroup_id}`}
+              </p>
+              <ul className="space-y-1">
+                {row.pending.map((p) => (
+                  <li
+                    key={p.term}
+                    className="flex items-start gap-2 bg-gray-900/60 border border-gray-800 rounded px-2 py-1"
+                  >
+                    <span className="flex-1">
+                      <span className="text-white font-mono">{p.term}</span>
+                      {p.meaning && <span className="text-gray-500"> — {p.meaning}</span>}
+                      <span className="text-gray-700 ml-2">{p.source}</span>
+                    </span>
+                    <button
+                      type="button"
+                      disabled={busy === `${row.talkgroup_id}:${p.term}`}
+                      onClick={() => act(row.talkgroup_id, p.term, true)}
+                      className="text-emerald-400 hover:text-emerald-300 disabled:opacity-40 font-semibold"
+                    >
+                      Add
+                    </button>
+                    <button
+                      type="button"
+                      disabled={busy === `${row.talkgroup_id}:${p.term}`}
+                      onClick={() => act(row.talkgroup_id, p.term, false)}
+                      className="text-gray-600 hover:text-red-400 disabled:opacity-40 font-semibold"
+                    >
+                      Drop
+                    </button>
+                  </li>
+                ))}
+              </ul>
+            </div>
+          ))}
+          {error && <p className="text-red-400 font-mono">{error}</p>}
+        </div>
+      )}
+    </div>
+  );
+}
+
 function VocabularyPanel({ systemId }: { systemId: string }) {
   const [vocab, setVocab]               = useState<string[] | null>(null);
   const [pending, setPending]           = useState<VocabularyPendingTerm[]>([]);
@@ -1560,6 +1779,7 @@ export default function SystemsPage() {
                 <PreferredTokenPanel systemId={s.system_id} initialTokenId={s.preferred_token_id} />
                 <AiFlagsPanel systemId={s.system_id} initial={(s as unknown as { ai_flags?: SystemAiFlags }).ai_flags ?? {}} />
                 <AreaContextPanel systemId={s.system_id} />
+                <TalkgroupPendingPanel systemId={s.system_id} />
                 <VocabularyPanel systemId={s.system_id} />
               </div>
             );

drb-frontend/lib/c2api.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { auth } from "@/lib/firebase";
-import type { AreaContext } from "@/lib/types";
+import type { AreaContext, TalkgroupPending } from "@/lib/types";
 
 const BASE = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_C2_URL ?? "http://localhost:8000";
 
@@ -151,12 +151,38 @@ export const c2api = {
   // {name, type, config} and would otherwise wipe them on every save.
   getAreaContext: (systemId: string) =>
     request<{ area_context: AreaContext }>(`/systems/${systemId}/area-context`),
+  // Only the operator-set fields go up. center/radius_km/resolved_* are the
+  // backend's — it geocodes them from the place and merges them back, and the
+  // response carries the anchor its edit produced.
   updateAreaContext: (systemId: string, area: AreaContext) =>
     request<{ ok: boolean; area_context: AreaContext }>(
       `/systems/${systemId}/area-context`,
-      { method: "PUT", body: JSON.stringify(area) },
+      {
+        method: "PUT",
+        body: JSON.stringify({
+          municipality: area.municipality ?? null,
+          county: area.county ?? null,
+          state: area.state ?? null,
+          local_knowledge: area.local_knowledge ?? [],
+        }),
+      },
     ),
 
+  // Talkgroup-level pending local knowledge (server-26#37). Proposals land on
+  // the talkgroup and are never promoted to the system automatically.
+  getTalkgroupPending: (systemId: string) =>
+    request<{ talkgroups: TalkgroupPending[] }>(`/systems/${systemId}/talkgroup-pending`),
+  approveTalkgroupTerm: (systemId: string, talkgroupId: number, term: string) =>
+    request(`/systems/${systemId}/talkgroup-pending/approve`, {
+      method: "POST",
+      body: JSON.stringify({ talkgroup_id: talkgroupId, term }),
+    }),
+  dismissTalkgroupTerm: (systemId: string, talkgroupId: number, term: string) =>
+    request(`/systems/${systemId}/talkgroup-pending/dismiss`, {
+      method: "POST",
+      body: JSON.stringify({ talkgroup_id: talkgroupId, term }),
+    }),
+
   // Vocabulary
   getVocabulary: (systemId: string) =>
     request<{ vocabulary: string[]; vocabulary_pending: { term: string; source: "induction" | "correction"; added_at: string }[]; vocabulary_bootstrapped: boolean }>(

drb-frontend/lib/types.ts

@@ -237,9 +237,40 @@ export interface AlertEvent {
  * a multi-county system can be specific per channel without its wider list
  * burying the detail.
  */
+export interface LocalKnowledgeEntry {
+  term: string;
+  meaning?: string | null;
+}
+
 export interface AreaContext {
+  // Set by an operator. Every field nullable on purpose: which SCOPE gets
+  // filled is the declaration of how homogeneous the system is. A one-town
+  // system is described once here and inherited by every talkgroup; a
+  // statewide one is left empty here and described per talkgroup.
   municipality?: string;
   county?: string;
-  roads?: string[];
+  state?: string;
-  landmarks?: string[];
+  local_knowledge?: LocalKnowledgeEntry[];
+  // Written by the backend, read-only here. Absent means the place is unset or
+  // too wide to discriminate, and location verification skips entirely
+  // (server-26#37) — never send these back.
+  center?: { lat: number; lng: number };
+  radius_km?: number;
+  resolved_from?: string;
+  resolved_at?: string;
+}
+
+/** A term the verifier or the induction loop proposed for one talkgroup. */
+export interface PendingLocalTerm {
+  term: string;
+  meaning?: string | null;
+  source: string;
+  added_at: string;
+  source_call_ids?: string[];
+}
+
+export interface TalkgroupPending {
+  talkgroup_id: number;
+  talkgroup_name?: string;
+  pending: PendingLocalTerm[];
 }