He says he doesn't want to fight against former colleagues and wants to invest his energy in a new direction.
In an official release Monday, Ward 38 City Councillor Glenn De Baeremaeker says he will not be competing for a seat on the new council and he's pulling out of the race.
De Baeremaeker cites fewer councillors with much bigger wards as a reason to leave the race to someone else, as the new political boundaries under the Ontario government's Better Local Government Act dramatically reduce his chances of a victory.
"I think I might have been able to pull it off-but at what cost to family, friends and supporters?" the 15-year council veteran says in the release. "A campaign is a grueling, seven-day-a-week proposition. It's a lot to ask of people when winning is a long shot."
De Baeremaeker's first election victory was in 2003, and lists a number of accomplishments in his ward, including a new library at the Scarborough Civic Centre, a centre for kids with autism, new splash pads and playgrounds, and national status for Scarborough's Rouge Park.
Despite his reasons for pulling out, De Baeremaeker says he supports a smaller city council.
"I actually support the reduction of council," he told CP24. "I've seen just how long the debates go."
He says it's like trying to get 44 strangers to decide what restaurant to go to.
"I've seen the sabotage, the chaos, and it's just too big. You'll never stop arguing but from 47 down to 25, at least they'll be less of it."