From 0dbd6375fcbcaef4d4a9afa438aa8c6e99b4f1c6 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Sameh Khamis <sameh@halfpixel.ai>
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 2026 12:50:15 -0700
Subject: [PATCH] fix: center named places on their own location

A place's bounds can reach far from the place itself; Tokyo's include
remote Pacific islands, so the middle of its box is open ocean. Keep the
geocoder's point for a named place and use it as the area's center,
while bounds still decide what lies inside the area.
---
 src/tools/area.js       | 12 ++++++++++--
 src/tools/area.test.mjs | 19 ++++++++++++++++++-
 src/tools/places.js     | 12 ++++++++++--
 3 files changed, 38 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)

diff --git a/src/tools/area.js b/src/tools/area.js
index ff61077bc..e494c6782 100644
--- a/src/tools/area.js
+++ b/src/tools/area.js
@@ -75,7 +75,11 @@ export async function resolveArea(area, { services, signal } = {}) {
       'invalid_arguments',
       `No place matched "${area.place}"; try a more specific name or a bbox`,
     );
-  return { label: place.name || area.place, ...place.bounds };
+  return {
+    label: place.name || area.place,
+    ...place.bounds,
+    ...(place.point ? { point: place.point } : {}),
+  };
 }
 
 function circleArea(lat, lon, radiusKm) {
@@ -151,9 +155,13 @@ export function distanceKm(a, b) {
   return 2 * EARTH_RADIUS_KM * Math.asin(Math.min(1, Math.sqrt(h)));
 }
 
-/** The center of a resolved area, handling boxes across the antimeridian. */
+/**
+ * The center of a resolved area: a radius area's center, a named place's own
+ * point, or the middle of a box (handling boxes across the antimeridian).
+ */
 export function areaCenter(area) {
   if (area.center) return { lat: area.center.lat, lon: area.center.lon };
+  if (area.point) return { lat: area.point.lat, lon: area.point.lon };
   const width =
     area.west <= area.east
       ? area.east - area.west
diff --git a/src/tools/area.test.mjs b/src/tools/area.test.mjs
index fac64690a..99df85684 100644
--- a/src/tools/area.test.mjs
+++ b/src/tools/area.test.mjs
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import assert from 'node:assert/strict';
 import test from 'node:test';
-import { areaContains, distanceKm, resolveArea } from './area.js';
+import { areaCenter, areaContains, distanceKm, resolveArea } from './area.js';
 import { placeFromGeocodeResult } from './places.js';
 
 test('an area needs exactly one form', async () => {
@@ -91,6 +91,7 @@ test('geocode results become bounded places', () => {
     {
       name: 'Oslo, Norway',
       bounds: { west: 10.5, south: 59.8, east: 10.9, north: 60 },
+      point: { lat: 59.9, lon: 10.7 },
     },
   );
   assert.deepEqual(
@@ -100,3 +101,19 @@ test('geocode results become bounded places', () => {
   );
   assert.equal(placeFromGeocodeResult({ geometry: {} }), null);
 });
+
+test('a named place centers on its own point, not the middle of its bounds', async () => {
+  // Tokyo's prefecture bounds reach remote Pacific islands.
+  const places = {
+    resolve: async () => ({
+      name: 'Tokyo, Japan',
+      bounds: { west: 136.07, south: 20.21, east: 153.99, north: 35.9 },
+      point: { lat: 35.6769, lon: 139.7639 },
+    }),
+  };
+  const tokyo = await resolveArea({ place: 'Tokyo' }, { services: { places } });
+  assert.deepEqual(areaCenter(tokyo), { lat: 35.6769, lon: 139.7639 });
+  assert.equal(areaContains(tokyo, { lat: 27.09, lon: 142.19 }), true);
+  const box = await resolveArea({ bbox: [0, 0, 10, 10] });
+  assert.deepEqual(areaCenter(box), { lat: 5, lon: 5 });
+});
diff --git a/src/tools/places.js b/src/tools/places.js
index 64d9da201..e7f4f8084 100644
--- a/src/tools/places.js
+++ b/src/tools/places.js
@@ -13,7 +13,11 @@ import { ToolError } from './catalog.js';
 
 const POINT_RADIUS_DEGREES = 0.25;
 
-/** Resolve place names to `{ name, bounds: { west, south, east, north } }` or null. */
+/**
+ * Resolve place names to `{ name, bounds: { west, south, east, north }, point }`
+ * or null. `point` is the place's own location, which can lie far from the
+ * middle of its bounds (a region with remote islands, for example).
+ */
 export function createGeocodePlaceService({
   fetchImpl = (...args) => globalThis.fetch(...args),
 } = {}) {
@@ -54,7 +58,11 @@ export function placeFromGeocodeResult(result) {
           east: Math.min(180, location.lng + POINT_RADIUS_DEGREES),
           north: Math.min(90, location.lat + POINT_RADIUS_DEGREES),
         };
-  return { name: result.formatted_address || null, bounds };
+  return {
+    name: result.formatted_address || null,
+    bounds,
+    point: { lat: location.lat, lon: location.lng },
+  };
 }
 
 /** Search points of interest; `configured` is false when the server has no search key. */