City Rentals’ Jeff Roberts Succeeds Blackwell as CRA Executive Director
The California Rental Association has named Jeff Roberts, president of City Rentals in Ontario, Calif., as its new executive director, replacing long-time ED Dale Blackwell, who tragically and unexpectedly died after falling and suffering a brain trauma last month.
Roberts brings with him 44 years of rental and vendor experience. Roberts has been involved in the rental industry since 1976, when he was hired at City Rentals by Richard and Dale Briggs. Roberts started as janitor and then worked his way up as yardman, service technician, counterman, driver, sales and now president.
Roberts has been a strong supporter of the CRA during his entire career and he believes the organization is both crucial and essential to the success of not only individual rental companies, but to the collective rental industry. Roberts has been involved with yard parties, training and the ongoing CRA Rental Rally tradeshows. Roberts joined the board of directors in 2012 and previously served as treasurer, vice president and president and most recently served as chairman of the board, as well as serving on the convention, insurance, investment and member benefits committees.
CRA executive assistant Carol Murphy and controller Vicky Blackwell said they are looking forward to a seamless transition. “Per the CRA Long Range Planning Committee this plan is being implemented earlier than expected,” Blackwell said.
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.