Jones Lang La Salle's banner outside Airside Retail Park on the main Dublin-Belfast Road in Swords informs passers-by "Retail Park to let, Opening Spring 2001".

But come Autumn 2001, and only two of the units - Atlantic Homecare and DID Electrical - are trading.

Airside's profile has been hindered by the empty 27,000 sq ft glazed and turreted unit fronting on to the main road.

Originally intended for furniture retailers Courts, it has lain vacant since it pulled out of the south of Ireland earlier this year, but is due to be taken over by furniture retailers, House of Denmark, next month.

Developed by Albany Homes and prefunded by two institutions - Irish Life Assurance Company and the Irish Pension Fund Property Unit Trust, which acquired the park for £50 million (€64.49m) - the 194,000 sq ft park has been dubbed "a white elephant" by some industry sources.

Others believe this to be an unfair indictment of the scheme, and that while Courts' withdrawal has been a major setback, Airside's future is bright, given its location and the impending completion of the section of the M1 between Dublin Airport and Swords in 2003.

Its detractors have pointed to the elaborate design of the park, which they say is impractical and veers away from the traditional box-style edge-of-town retail format. Another criticism is that the main tranche of units are not clearly visible from the main road.

Architect Tim Chapman from Ashlin Coleman says that while he is aware that some believe too much money was spent on the design, the intention was to provide "something more than the bog standard retail layout", he says. The planners wanted a building that would be architecturally in sync with other recent additions to Swords, such as the Pavilions Shopping Centre and Fingal County Council's imposing headquarters.

"In reality most of the units are rectangular, and only two have extra detail. The retailers who are currently fitting out the front tower unit are quite excited about being able to show their furniture in such an effective setting."

The fact that this unit obscures the view of the rest is not necessarily a disadvantage, he says.

"Most people go to retail parks as a destination rather than to spend the day shopping around. They know that the shops are there. It's a typical retail knee-jerk reaction that these type of units need to be seen."

The success of the park will ultimately rest on the appeal of the traders it attracts.

The units range in size from 7,500 sq ft to 50,000 sq ft and rents range from £14.50 to £18.50 (€18.42-€23.49) per sq ft. There are 1,020 surface car-parking spaces for customers.

Apart from the two stores trading - Atlantic Homecare and DID Electrical - there are six other units reserved for carpet, electrical, toy and furniture retailers.

Jones Lang La Salle has commitments on 60 per cent of the floor area, according to handling agent Stephen Murray.

"Two of the units are trading, two are fitting out and two are due to come back to us imminently with a commitment."

Smyths Toys and House of Denmark are fitting out and due to open next month. A 20,000 sq ft unit is available after "a furniture retailer decided not to progress with a deal" and there is also a 2,000 sq ft fast food unit vacant .

B&Q's attempt to set up in Airside Retail Park was stymied by An Bord Pleanβla, which agreed with objector Woodies that a superstore there would have an adverse impact on existing retail shopping outlets trading in the catchment area, and that a store of such scale would be premature, given that work on a section of the M1 between the airport and the area north of Swords is not yet completed.

Fintan Tierney of Lambert Smith Hampton says that the progress of prefunded schemes can be delayed because "the terms on which units can be let are more inflexible than in a straightforward situation. Developers should be careful to maintain flexibility."

Stephen Murray, however, maintains that while prefunding can slow down the process of signing tenants because an additional layer of institutional approval is needed, most of the multiples that occupy these parks are familiar with the vagaries of institutional leases.

"You may get a situation where a tenant has unreasonable requirements which the institutions are not prepared to accept. Some might not want a keep-open clause in the contract. but the majority know the score and are already in the market and trading in similar parks elsewhere."

David Daly of Albany Homes says that the existing tenants, DID and Atlantic Homecare, are "trading very successfully" and that he is "proud of the architecture and the fact that it is aesthetically pleasing".

"The addition of the spherical shapes at either end cost a bit more but they add weight to the whole development and give impact to the entrance into Swords village."