Completion of Oak Harbor’s long-sought waterfront trail is nearing, but that doesn’t stop some nearby residents from continuing to object.

Judy Norton, a Waterside Condo renter, opposes the city’s boardwalk-style pathway that will pass in front of the waterside development, finishing the waterfront trail.

“It’s a privacy issue,” she said.

Over the past year, she and her 12-year-old daughter have noticed trail users climbing onto the sea wall and peering into their home.

“They actually get up on the sea wall and look in,” she said. “It makes me uncomfortable. The privacy issue is huge.”

The condo’s owner, JoAnn Sample, is uneasy about the new trail, too.

“I’m just concerned for Judy and her daughter, for their privacy and security,” she said.

The existing pathway, which ends at the corner of the condos and does not go through to Flintstone Park, gets a lot of foot traffic, Norton said. The boardwalk plans, which will connect the two trails on either side of the condos, will make for a busy thoroughfare, she said.

Director of Development Services Steve Powers said the city is looking closely at the trail’s impact on nearby property owners and the environment. Planners have also considered the possible impacts by the marine environment and winter weather on the trail.

“This is our best effort in balancing those concerns,” Powers told a crowd of almost 30 at an open house at City Hall on Tuesday night.

Fred Walrath, who lives in a single family home that’s not part of the Waterside Condos, is concerned that the removal of driftwood may lead to flooding. The driftwood is there for a reason, he said.

“I’ve opposed the walkway for the past 20 years,” Walrath said. ‘The city is going to jeopardize our security because (the walkway) is at the ordinary high water mark.”

These complaints are nothing new to City Engineer Eric Johnston.

“I have heard them all before,” he said in a interview with the News-Times.

“Now I can’t say that we’re perfect,” Johnston told the open house attendees, “But what I can say is that we’ll do the best we can.”

The following day, Johnston and council member Rick Almberg visited the site and talked with Norton about the upcoming construction.

“The project, as it is designed, was approved with the shoreline permit that was reviewed by the city council, planning commission and other various agencies,” Johnston said.

Later, he added that there were at least three public hearings on the project as it related to the permits. Notices were sent out to condo owners notifying them of the dates prior to each hearing, he said.

Construction is scheduled to continue as planned. The project will go through “fits and starts,” he said as it is largely a volunteer effort, and is expected to be completed by the end of December. A ground breaking ceremony for the boardwalk section of the waterfront trail will be held at Flintstone park Monday, Sept. 29 at 4 p.m.