The former chief of the defunct Anacostia Waterfront Corp. and now a top aide to Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter is alleged to have committed an “ethics violation” by D.C. auditors for his role in a questionable real estate services contract.

Andrew Altman should have removed himself from any involvement in awarding “real estate project management services” in the area of Nationals Park because of his direct ties to the contractor, the D.C. inspector general concluded in a recent audit.

But Altman signed the deal, which ultimately paid out nearly $1 million for services “that could not be substantiated or were questionable at best,” auditors determined.

Altman served for 10 months in 2005 as chief executive officer of the Anacostia Waterfront Corp., a quasi-independent agency charged with guiding the lucrative redevelopment of billions in waterfront real estate, including the ballpark district and Poplar Point.

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He resigned in October 2005 for a private sector job, but returned to government work this year in his native Philadelphia as Nutter’s deputy mayor for planning and economic development.

Altman signed a real estate services contract with Carmel, Calif.-based Hamilton, Rabinovitz & Alschuler in September 2005 despite being listed as a reference in the firm’s proposal, the inspector general said. John H. Alschuler Jr., who formerly worked for Altman in the D.C. planning office, signed the contract on behalf of the firm.

For both reasons, auditors concluded, Altman should not have been involved in the deal.

“We believe that this was an ethics violation and contrary to [procurement regulation], which prohibits the appearance of conflict of interest or impropriety in connection with the AWC's procurement activities,” the IG wrote.

Doug Oliver, a Nutter spokesman, said “any such accusation flies in the face of what we know about Andy Altman,” but he could not comment on specifics.

The matter has been forwarded to the IG’s investigative arm for further review, officials said.

The yearlong contract with the developer, which cost the city $924,881 despite a directive from the AWC board not to pay more than $600,000, remains a mystery. Auditors “weren’t really able to identify what the actual contract deliverables were for,” said LaDonia Wilkins, the inspector general’s director of general audits.

Mayor Adrian Fenty dissolved the AWC last year.

mneibauer@dcexaminer.com