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NEW YORK CITY-Vornado Realty Trust will replace a $170-million floating rate loan on 770 Broadway with a $353-million fixed-rate loan at 5.68%. "We have a very focused strategy," said Michael D. Fascitelli, Vornado's president. "We're a very simple company. We try to make money for you." Officials from the REIT delivered a presentation during Wachovia Securities' 9th Annual Real Estate Securities Conference here. "We're not quarter to quarter focused, we're in it for the long haul."

The firm also has fielded unsolicited offers ranging from $130 million to $150 million on a 17,000-sf piece of Madison Avenue retail it purchased for $113 million earlier this year. The Westbury Hotel blockfront at Madison Avenue between 69th and 70th streets is currently 100% occupied. "People said we were crazy," Fascitelli said. "But rents are approaching $1,000 per sf on Madison Avenue. Paying over $600 per sf and getting $1,000. It's not stupid."

The REIT is looking to rework a number of recently acquired mall properties including the Broadway Mall in Hicksville, South Hills in Poughkeepsie and Springfield Mall in Springfield, VA. "We buy property we can improve," Fascitelli added.

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