For years, Patty Burk has been one of biggest promoters of Downtown living. Now she's putting her money where her mouth is.

Ms. Burk, vice president of housing and economic development for the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, has become a player in the city's residential renaissance.

She is one of three partners in 5 Lofts, a condominium development at 806 Penn Ave. in the heart of the Cultural District.

Ms. Burk has joined two other investors, Sean Luther and Tom Jackson, in converting the six-story former headquarters of LLI Engineering into five condos, plus ground level commercial space.

Through their company Ninth and Liberty Partners LLC, they are offering buyers "white box" units starting at $198,000, seeking to bring a more affordable alternative to some of the luxury condominium projects being built Downtown.

By "white box" they mean a building shell which the buyer can customize how he or she pleases. The developer also will provide the kitchen, electrical, and plumbing (enough for 2¹/₂ baths) infrastructure and the heating and cooling systems.

Mr. Luther estimated that it would cost a buyer another $40,000 to $45,000 to finish out a condo. He said one of the advantages to a "white box" unit is that a buyer can upgrade it in phases, starting with one bathroom, for example, then adding others later.

The approach and the investment appear to be paying dividends already. In the week since the three partners closed on the building, they have secured three buyers for condos. Only the fourth and fifth floor units are still available.

Mr. Luther said the price of the units and the location near Benedum Center and the Cultural District's proposed RiverParc project, which will feature more housing, "has made it a really easy sell."

"From an investment point of view, it can't lose," he said.

Ms. Burk has been promoting and encouraging Downtown living in her position with the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership and in her former role as program director for the Downtown Living Initiative.

However, she said leading by example was not her main motivation in investing in the 5 Lofts project.

"I think that was secondary. Primarily, it was a good investment opportunity and a good opportunity for me to do a full development project from beginning to end," she said.

It's the first project she has invested in Downtown.

She, Mr. Luther and Mr. Jackson paid $625,000 for the building. They hope to have the shells in place for all five units by the end of August. They expect the first residents to move in sometime in September.

Mr. Luther said he has worked with Ms. Burk in the past. When the building became available, it was an opportunity too good to pass up, he said.

The building had been remodeled in the 1990s and had an elevator and fire suppression equipment.

"It's a great first project because we're hitting the market at the right time and we have a fantastic development team put together," he added.

Holly Brubach, the former style editor for The New York Times, also is offering unfinished space for condos in the nine-story Granite Building at Sixth Avenue and Wood Street, Downtown.

She purchased the building in late 2005 and plans to use two floors for her personal residence.