The Upper Clutha Environmental Society is concerned Damper Bay Estates Ltd is trying to move 408m of the track so it can build a six-house lakeside development opposed by 110 submitters.
This could set a precedent for other developers to attempt to move pre-existing tracks to suit their "own selfish purposes", society spokesman Julian Haworth said.
"Why should the Otago Regional Council move the track? I was pleased they [the ORC] are sticking to their guns and they are defending their sensible track alignment along the fence line ... the track is not the issue. I don't know why we are wasting our time with it," Mr Haworth said.
Queenstown accountant Mark Taylor, on behalf of Damper Bay Estates Ltd, is in Australia and responded to the society's concerns in an email yesterday.
"The track has been poorly constructed, is not in keeping with the landscape classification and damaged Damper Bay Estates Ltd's property.
"This matter needs to be addressed by the Otago Regional Council and the Queenstown Lakes District Council irrespective of Damper Bay Estate Ltd's resource consent application.
"When this matter has been resolved, the final alignment of the track will become evident and assessment of the effects of the proposed activity can be undertaken from this track position," Mr Taylor said.
Damper Bay Estates Ltd, directed by Mr Taylor and Aucklanders Craig Heatley and Trevor Farmer, has applied for a six-house development consent at Damper Bay.
It is on hold while the track issues are sorted out.
The portion of track they are concerned about crosses recreation reserve at the top of a cliff, above Damper Bay.
The developers have also complained about the quality of fencing.
A map prepared for the QLDC confirms the track is on recreation reserve.
The developers also want Queenstown Lakes District Council consultants to redo visual landscape assessments of the effects of the proposed development from the alternative track alignment.
ORC corporate services manager Wayne Scott said last month the track dispute was being "pushed into a set of wider issues" and the council hoped to resolve problems by remediation, rather than realignment.
Mr Haworth said Damper Bay Estates' suggested realignment would require considerable blasting of highly natural cliff faces, causing adverse visual effects.
He agrees up to 12 boundary fence posts may require some simple stabilisation work and that two other sections have deviated from the consented position, one of which involves less than 50m of Damper Bay land.
That deviation was not major and could easily be fixed by a digger in a day.
The other deviation was within recreation reserve at Ironside Hill and nowhere near the Damper Bay application site, he said.
The society has written to both councils outlining its concerns about the track and calling for more transparency in the councils' dealings with Damper Bay Estates Ltd.
