Temple City

Fortune-teller Helen Lee finally has her wish. The City Council on Tuesday granted Lee a permit to open a fortune-telling business on Las Tunas Drive. Her sister, Aggie Lee, was not so fortunate, however. The council postponed action on her application because she wanted to locate her business in a C-2 commercial zone a few blocks away. The current ordinance allows fortune-tellers to operate only in commercial areas zoned C-3.

Temple City dropped its ban on fortune-telling last month in anticipation of a state Supreme Court ruling in a case involving a similar ordinance in Azusa. Last week, the court ruled that Azusa’s ban was unconstitutional because it infringed on free speech. Officials of several other San Gabriel Valley cities that had banned fortune-telling, including Arcadia, Monrovia, Rosemead, West Covina and Pomona, said they plan to follow the court’s guidelines on the issue.