The New Normal: When your living room becomes City Hall

Redmond City Councilmember Varisha Khan is navigating her first term from home while supporting her community through the pandemic.

Ashli Blow

Ashli Blow • Jul 14, 2020

Jul 14, 2020

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          <article>
            <header>
              <hgroup>
                <h1>The New Normal: When your living room becomes City Hall</h1>
                <h2><p>Redmond City Councilmember Varisha Khan is navigating her first term from home while supporting her community through the pandemic.</p></h2>
              </hgroup>
               <p>By <a href="/author/ashli-blow/">Ashli Blow</a></p> 
              <p><time datetime="2025-02-04T05:00:00-08:00">Jul 14, 2020</time></p>
            </header>
            <p>Varisha Khan is a first-time city council member in Redmond. She drafted, proposed and passed recent legislation that protects Redmond residents from late fees and evictions, and offers support during other hardships. She recognizes this pandemic as a collective trauma for society and the only way she feels she can cope is by doing what she knows: helping her community through writing humane policy that mends a frayed social safety net.</p><hr><p>Support for <em>The New Normal</em> is provided by Comcast. All news stories on Crosscut are controlled by our editorial team. Visit our <a href="https://crosscut.com/about?ref=avalancheghost.one">about us page</a> to learn more about Crosscut's editorial independence policy.</p><hr>
          </article>

Varisha Khan is a first-time city council member in Redmond. She drafted, proposed and passed recent legislation that protects Redmond residents from late fees and evictions, and offers support during other hardships. She recognizes this pandemic as a collective trauma for society and the only way she feels she can cope is by doing what she knows: helping her community through writing humane policy that mends a frayed social safety net.

Support for The New Normal is provided by Comcast. All news stories on Crosscut are controlled by our editorial team. Visit our about us page to learn more about Crosscut's editorial independence policy.

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By Ashli Blow

Ashli Blow is a Seattle-based freelance writer who talks with people — in places from urban watersheds to remote wildernesses — about the environment around them. She’s been working in journal