Each month, between 300 and 350 people check in for minor surgical procedures at the Surgery Center of Des Moines’ office on the East Side. Within a few hours, they’re walking back out the door to be driven home for recovery.

The outpatient surgery center, now located on Pennsylvania Avenue near Iowa Lutheran Hospital, plans to nearly double its space with a new facility to be built at 717 Lyon St. in the East Village. The 14,428-square-foot facility will be constructed at the site of the Capitol Plaza office building, which will be torn down within the next few weeks. The center is expected to open in September 2006.

“We’ll be able to accommodate more patients and more physicians in a state-of-the-art facility,” said Cheryl Hetrick, the surgery center’s administrator.

“We were very interested in staying on the East Side of Des Moines and servicing the population that lives and works within this community,” said Hetrick, who heads a staff of 37. “We knew that with the growth and restructuring of the downtown community, it was important that we contribute back to the city of Des Moines. We’re just thrilled to be taking over what used to be the Wilden Clinic.”

The center plans an 11 a.m. groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday at the building site.

Because the surgery center will remain close to the city’s hospitals, the new location will also be convenient for the physicians who perform procedures there, Hetrick said. Between its East Side and West Des Moines offices, the Surgery Center of Des Moines is utilized by about 180 physicians, she said.

Both of the outpatient surgery centers are owned and operated by HealthSouth Corp. The Birmingham, Ala.-based company is one of the largest providers of outpatient surgery, diagnostic imaging and rehabilitative health-care services, with approximately 40,000 employees nationwide.

Now under a new management team, HealthSouth recently reached a $100 million settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the wake of alleged criminal fraud perpetrated by the management team headed by former Chairman and CEO Richard Scrushy. The company has also agreed to repay $325 million, plus interest, to the federal government for alleged inappropriate Medicare billing practices.

According to a statement issued last month by HealthSouth officials, the company to date has spent approximately $440 million to stabilize its operations, restructure its accounting records and company finances in an effort to restore its credibility. It has issued financial statements to restate earnings prior to Dec. 31, 2003, that resulted in a cumulative net reduction in shareholders’ equity of $3.9 billion.