feat: Refactor template handling, improve scheduler functions, and add timezone utilities

- Moved Jinja2 template setup to a shared configuration file (templates_config.py) for consistent usage across routers.
- Introduced timezone utilities in a new module (timezone.py) to handle UTC to local time conversions and formatting.
- Updated all relevant routers to use the new shared template configuration and timezone filters.
- Enhanced templates to utilize local time formatting for various datetime fields, improving user experience with timezone awareness.

backend/routers/alerts.py

@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ API endpoints for managing in-app alerts.
 """
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Request, Depends, HTTPException, Query
-from fastapi.templating import Jinja2Templates
 from fastapi.responses import HTMLResponse, JSONResponse
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 from typing import Optional
@@ -14,9 +13,9 @@ from datetime import datetime, timedelta
 from backend.database import get_db
 from backend.models import Alert, RosterUnit
 from backend.services.alert_service import get_alert_service
+from backend.templates_config import templates
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/alerts", tags=["alerts"])
-templates = Jinja2Templates(directory="templates")
 
 
 # ============================================================================

backend/routers/dashboard.py

@@ -1,10 +1,9 @@
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Request, Depends
-from fastapi.templating import Jinja2Templates
 
 from backend.services.snapshot import emit_status_snapshot
+from backend.templates_config import templates
 
 router = APIRouter()
-templates = Jinja2Templates(directory="templates")
 
 
 @router.get("/dashboard/active")

backend/routers/project_locations.py

@@ -6,7 +6,6 @@ and unit assignments within projects.
 """
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Request, Depends, HTTPException, Query
-from fastapi.templating import Jinja2Templates
 from fastapi.responses import HTMLResponse, JSONResponse
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 from sqlalchemy import and_, or_
@@ -24,9 +23,9 @@ from backend.models import (
     RosterUnit,
     RecordingSession,
 )
+from backend.templates_config import templates
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/projects/{project_id}", tags=["project-locations"])
-templates = Jinja2Templates(directory="templates")
 
 
 # ============================================================================

backend/routers/projects.py

@@ -9,17 +9,19 @@ Provides API endpoints for the Projects system:
 """
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Request, Depends, HTTPException, Query
-from fastapi.templating import Jinja2Templates
 from fastapi.responses import HTMLResponse, JSONResponse, StreamingResponse
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 from sqlalchemy import func, and_
 from datetime import datetime, timedelta
 from typing import Optional
+from collections import OrderedDict
 import uuid
 import json
 import logging
 import io
 
+from backend.utils.timezone import utc_to_local, format_local_datetime
+
 from backend.database import get_db
 from backend.models import (
     Project,
@@ -31,9 +33,9 @@ from backend.models import (
     RecurringSchedule,
     RosterUnit,
 )
+from backend.templates_config import templates
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/projects", tags=["projects"])
-templates = Jinja2Templates(directory="templates")
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
 
@@ -461,16 +463,37 @@ async def get_project_schedules(
     if status:
         query = query.filter(ScheduledAction.execution_status == status)
 
-    schedules = query.order_by(ScheduledAction.scheduled_time.desc()).all()
+    # For pending actions, show soonest first (ascending)
+    # For completed/failed, show most recent first (descending)
+    if status == "pending":
+        schedules = query.order_by(ScheduledAction.scheduled_time.asc()).all()
+    else:
+        schedules = query.order_by(ScheduledAction.scheduled_time.desc()).all()
 
-    # Enrich with location details
-    schedules_data = []
+    # Enrich with location details and group by date
+    schedules_by_date = OrderedDict()
     for schedule in schedules:
         location = None
         if schedule.location_id:
             location = db.query(MonitoringLocation).filter_by(id=schedule.location_id).first()
 
-        schedules_data.append({
+        # Get local date for grouping
+        if schedule.scheduled_time:
+            local_dt = utc_to_local(schedule.scheduled_time)
+            date_key = local_dt.strftime("%Y-%m-%d")
+            date_display = local_dt.strftime("%A, %B %d, %Y")  # "Wednesday, January 22, 2026"
+        else:
+            date_key = "unknown"
+            date_display = "Unknown Date"
+
+        if date_key not in schedules_by_date:
+            schedules_by_date[date_key] = {
+                "date_display": date_display,
+                "date_key": date_key,
+                "actions": [],
+            }
+
+        schedules_by_date[date_key]["actions"].append({
             "schedule": schedule,
             "location": location,
         })
@@ -478,7 +501,7 @@ async def get_project_schedules(
     return templates.TemplateResponse("partials/projects/schedule_list.html", {
         "request": request,
         "project_id": project_id,
-        "schedules": schedules_data,
+        "schedules_by_date": schedules_by_date,
     })
 
 

backend/routers/recurring_schedules.py

@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ API endpoints for managing recurring monitoring schedules.
 """
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Request, Depends, HTTPException, Query
-from fastapi.templating import Jinja2Templates
 from fastapi.responses import HTMLResponse, JSONResponse
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 from typing import Optional
@@ -15,9 +14,9 @@ import json
 from backend.database import get_db
 from backend.models import RecurringSchedule, MonitoringLocation, Project, RosterUnit
 from backend.services.recurring_schedule_service import get_recurring_schedule_service
+from backend.templates_config import templates
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/projects/{project_id}/recurring-schedules", tags=["recurring-schedules"])
-templates = Jinja2Templates(directory="templates")
 
 
 # ============================================================================
@@ -209,17 +208,25 @@ async def create_recurring_schedule(
             auto_increment_index=data.get("auto_increment_index", True),
             timezone=data.get("timezone", "America/New_York"),
         )
+
+        # Generate actions immediately so they appear right away
+        generated_actions = service.generate_actions_for_schedule(schedule, horizon_days=7)
+
         created_schedules.append({
             "schedule_id": schedule.id,
             "location_id": location.id,
             "location_name": location.name,
+            "actions_generated": len(generated_actions),
         })
 
+    total_actions = sum(s.get("actions_generated", 0) for s in created_schedules)
+
     return JSONResponse({
         "success": True,
         "schedules": created_schedules,
         "count": len(created_schedules),
-        "message": f"Created {len(created_schedules)} recurring schedule(s)",
+        "actions_generated": total_actions,
+        "message": f"Created {len(created_schedules)} recurring schedule(s) with {total_actions} upcoming actions",
     })
 
 

backend/routers/scheduler.py

@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ Handles scheduled actions for automated recording control.
 """
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Request, Depends, HTTPException, Query
-from fastapi.templating import Jinja2Templates
 from fastapi.responses import HTMLResponse, JSONResponse
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 from sqlalchemy import and_, or_
@@ -23,9 +22,9 @@ from backend.models import (
     RosterUnit,
 )
 from backend.services.scheduler import get_scheduler
+from backend.templates_config import templates
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/projects/{project_id}/scheduler", tags=["scheduler"])
-templates = Jinja2Templates(directory="templates")
 
 
 # ============================================================================

backend/routers/seismo_dashboard.py

@@ -5,13 +5,12 @@ Provides endpoints for the seismograph-specific dashboard
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Request, Depends, Query
 from fastapi.responses import HTMLResponse
-from fastapi.templating import Jinja2Templates
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 from backend.database import get_db
 from backend.models import RosterUnit
+from backend.templates_config import templates
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/seismo-dashboard", tags=["seismo-dashboard"])
-templates = Jinja2Templates(directory="templates")
 
 
 @router.get("/stats", response_class=HTMLResponse)

backend/routers/slm_dashboard.py

@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ Provides API endpoints for the Sound Level Meters dashboard page.
 """
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Request, Depends, Query
-from fastapi.templating import Jinja2Templates
 from fastapi.responses import HTMLResponse
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 from sqlalchemy import func
@@ -18,11 +17,11 @@ import os
 from backend.database import get_db
 from backend.models import RosterUnit
 from backend.routers.roster_edit import sync_slm_to_slmm_cache
+from backend.templates_config import templates
 
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/api/slm-dashboard", tags=["slm-dashboard"])
-templates = Jinja2Templates(directory="templates")
 
 # SLMM backend URL - configurable via environment variable
 SLMM_BASE_URL = os.getenv("SLMM_BASE_URL", "http://localhost:8100")

backend/routers/slm_ui.py

@@ -6,7 +6,6 @@ Provides endpoints for SLM dashboard cards, detail pages, and real-time data.
 
 from fastapi import APIRouter, Depends, HTTPException, Request
 from fastapi.responses import HTMLResponse
-from fastapi.templating import Jinja2Templates
 from sqlalchemy.orm import Session
 from datetime import datetime
 import httpx
@@ -15,11 +14,11 @@ import os
 
 from backend.database import get_db
 from backend.models import RosterUnit
+from backend.templates_config import templates
 
 logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
 
 router = APIRouter(prefix="/slm", tags=["slm-ui"])
-templates = Jinja2Templates(directory="templates")
 
 SLMM_BASE_URL = os.getenv("SLMM_BASE_URL", "http://172.19.0.1:8100")