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Hurricane Katrina, as everyone knows, was very bad news for New Orleans. But because the disaster was so bad — hundreds of homes destroyed, whole districts of the city flooded — it provoked numerous architects and urban designers to come up with spirited, often inspired schemes for reconstruction. In the year following Katrina, however, all that talented cogitation produced almost nothing that anyone was willing or able to build in New Orleans.

That was when matinee idol Brad Pitt stepped up to the plate.

Mr. Pitt and Hollywood producer Steve Bing put up $10-million (U.S.) of their own money to kick-start the non-profit housing foundation Make It Right (MIR), with the aim of providing 150 new houses for people made homeless in New Orleans' flood-ruined Lower Ninth Ward. (The group has raised millions more.) Mr. Pitt then asked each of 13 architects from the United States and abroad to create a 1,200-square-foot house that would cost no more than $150,000 to build. The list of invited architects includes international high-fliers such as Thom Mayne, David Adjaye, Shigeru Ban and James Timberlake, in addition to several less well-known professionals.

In the year since I first reported on this development in this column, the project has rolled steadily forward. Most notably, the first six MIR houses have been completed. According to Architectural Record magazine, a fan of Mr. Pitt's efforts, these buildings "represent not only fresh starts for homeowners, but also blueprints for affordable, storm-resistant, and sustainable housing designs." They are also among the freshest answers currently on offer to the old avant-garde prayer for the perfect mass-produced house, obtainable by everyone, stylish and comfortable and efficient.

But now that the first MIR houses are coming on line, it's worth asking how well they respond to that long-standing desire for cheap, solid housing. They certainly haven't turned out to be very affordable. Each house has been heavily subsidized by Mr. Pitt's group. Moreover, meeting the target cost of $150,000 a home has meant relying on donated materials and labour, as well as the goodwill of the architects, who created the designs free of charge. Such buildings grow only in idealistic hothouses of the kind the MIR foundation is providing and they don't provide a workable model for large-scale construction of emergency housing in the real world. But never mind: MIR is an exercise in high-minded civic co-operation, and — who knows? — the experience may lead some architects closer to the holy grail of the quickly produced, mass-access house.

The emphasis on high contemporary style has produced some interesting designs for the citizens of the Lower Ninth to choose from. One of the first houses, by architect Nora Gordon, of the Los Angeles-based firm Graft, is a good example of the freewheeling aesthetics favoured by MIR organizers. Perched on tall pillars, to keep the living quarters above flood level, the composition is attractively cocky and chic. A steep entry stairway runs up from the ground on one side of the building — an architectural quotation of the exterior staircases common in old New Orleans dwellings. Unlike the other houses, which have been stick-built on-site, Graft's modular design was prefabricated in North Carolina.

In the blogosphere surrounding MIR, there has been some criticism of its determination to bring advanced design ideas into the Lower Ninth when what's most urgently needed is quick-built housing to replace what's been lost. I would be inclined to share this point of view, were MIR merely throwing up entertaining architectural bijoux while neglecting the reconstruction of the neighbourhood as a whole. As things are turning out, MIR is engaged in fruitful co-operation with public agencies to get the larger job done. With any luck, and considerable hard work, MIR houses will fit well into the revived urban fabric.

Another blogger criticism of the avant-garde stylistics is more penetrating. "Concrete, steel, clean lines and no frills — modern marvels, all of them — and all of them look terribly cold and uninviting," an anonymous commentator writes. "Why would New Orleans — with its graceful, traditional styling, warm inviting porches and gingerbread, even on the smallest shotgun homes, want these abominations — even in the Ninth Ward?"

Dropping extreme modernist designs on this traditional neighbourhood would certainly be unfortunate. But I think this line of attack is unfair to what the architects have done. The results of their labour are mindful of New Orleans' vernacular traditions. Not subservient to them, to be sure. All but the most radical MIR designs will contribute well to the texture of the town, supporting the old tapestry of housing while freshening it up.

We look forward to seeing how the intriguing MIR project continues to roll out toward its goal of 150 new houses.