LOS ANGELES (AP) — Real estate developer Rick Caruso says he won’t enter the race to become the mayor of Los Angeles in 2013.

The president and CEO of Caruso Affiliated said Thursday it’s not an appropriate time for him to step away from his company.

The mall tycoon’s namesake company developed The Grove, The Americana at Brand and other major shopping centers in Southern California.

For several months he had considered and talked to political consultants about a mayoral run.

Caruso said in a statement that he looks forward to creating jobs, maintaining civic and community activism, and other “endeavors that enrich the lives of people in this city.”

Of about a dozen remaining candidates, City Controller Wendy Greuel and City Councilmembers Jan Perry and Eric Garcetti are considered the front runners.

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