The executive officer of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District is retiring after more than 18 years as the head of the agency, district officials announced Tuesday.

Jack Broadbent, the longtime executive officer for the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, announced his retirement. (Photo courtesy of BAAQMD)

Jack Broadbent has served as the air district’s executive officer since 2004 after stints with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and South Coast Air Quality Management District and in the private sector.

Alexander “Sandy” Crockett will take over as interim executive officer while the district, which regulates air quality in the nine-county Bay Area, looks for a longer-term interim or permanent replacement for Broadbent.

“On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, its employees and the residents of the Bay Area, I thank Mr. Broadbent for his many years of service in improving the quality of our lives,” Contra Costa County Supervisor and air district board chair Karen Mitchoff said in a news release.

Dan McMenamin is the managing editor at Bay City News, directing daily news coverage of the 12-county greater Bay Area. He has worked for BCN since 2008 and has been managing editor since 2014 after previously serving as BCN’s San Francisco bureau reporter. A UC Davis graduate, he came to BCN after working for a newspaper and nonprofit in the Davis area. He handles staffing, including coaching of our interns, day-to-day coverage decisions and management of the newswire.