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The trend of the casual, relaxing coffee house has steadily evolved into a cultural mainstay, becoming part of the social and entertainment canvas for large and small cities across the country. Panera Bread Company, operating under the Panera and Saint Louis Bread Company banners, is currently expanding its 600-plus locations throughout the U.S. Its innovative bakery caf????????(R)???????+???????(R)???????(C) concept and fresh approach to the marketplace has made Panera a leader in the quick-casual restaurant business.
A hallmark of the stores has always been the formation of an interior environment that combines an old-world ambiance with the contemporary look of a casual, inviting caf????????(R)???????+???????(R)???????(C). Renowned for their artisan approach to food and coffees, it?EUR??,,????'?????<
This store is just a little different from the rest of their locations. SLB of Central Illinois, the franchise owner located in Bloomington, Illinois, chose to use integral concrete color from Solomon Colors to enhance the new look of their courtyard and service walk. The easy-to-use product allowed them to custom-design the color and texture to enhance the brand image of Panera Bread. MGDF Limited, a landscape architecture firm based in Chicago, designed the outdoor seating area with pleasing aesthetics. Adding colored concrete to the brick, stucco and familiar canvas awnings made the ?EUR??,,????'?????<
The General Contractor for the project, Halverson Construction Company, Inc., of Springfield, Illinois, had many of the obstacles that are inherent in fast track building projects ?EUR??,,????'?????< The challenge of keeping scaffolding and plastic away from freshly poured concrete for at least 48 hours is critical when trying to achieve color consistency from pour to pour. To solve this challenge, the trades scheduled days to work in specific areas to accommodate everyone?EUR??,,????'?????< The location of the project also added to the concrete placement concerns. With access limited to one side of the building, all the concrete was placed using a concrete pump. A job this size could have easily been poured and finished in one pour, had it not been for the hand tooled joints 2' on center. With a high profile job and customer satisfaction in mind, Runkel Concrete, Inc. of Springfield, Illinois, made the decision to reduce the pour sizes so that finishers could work from walk boards in order to tool the concrete joints. Making at least six separate pours on this project was time-consuming, but it was essential to the incredible finished concrete. Ideal weather conditions would have expedited the completion of the fa????????ade, allowing the concrete to be poured without any foot traffic until it had cured to avoid damage. But, springtime in central Illinois can bring rain and high temperatures in the same day, making a consistent finished product difficult to achieve. Working together, the architects, designers, contractors and installers developed solutions to ensure the quality and integrity of the finished job despite the obstacles they faced. The final walk-through inspection of the colored concrete courtyard received accolades from all. There is even talk of coloring existing exterior concrete at SLB of Central Illinois?EUR??,,????'?????<
The challenge of keeping scaffolding and plastic away from freshly poured concrete for at least 48 hours is critical when trying to achieve color consistency from pour to pour. To solve this challenge, the trades scheduled days to work in specific areas to accommodate everyone?EUR??,,????'?????<
The location of the project also added to the concrete placement concerns. With access limited to one side of the building, all the concrete was placed using a concrete pump. A job this size could have easily been poured and finished in one pour, had it not been for the hand tooled joints 2' on center. With a high profile job and customer satisfaction in mind, Runkel Concrete, Inc. of Springfield, Illinois, made the decision to reduce the pour sizes so that finishers could work from walk boards in order to tool the concrete joints. Making at least six separate pours on this project was time-consuming, but it was essential to the incredible finished concrete.
Ideal weather conditions would have expedited the completion of the fa????????ade, allowing the concrete to be poured without any foot traffic until it had cured to avoid damage. But, springtime in central Illinois can bring rain and high temperatures in the same day, making a consistent finished product difficult to achieve. Working together, the architects, designers, contractors and installers developed solutions to ensure the quality and integrity of the finished job despite the obstacles they faced.
The final walk-through inspection of the colored concrete courtyard received accolades from all. There is even talk of coloring existing exterior concrete at SLB of Central Illinois?EUR??,,????'?????<
Project Owner: SLB of Central Illinois Panera Bread Company franchise owner Bloomington, Illinois
Landscape Architect: MGDF Limited Chicago, Illinois
Manufacturer: Solomon Colors Springfield, Illinois / Rialto, California
Installer: Runkel Concrete, Inc. Springfield, Illinois
General Contractor: Halverson Construction Company, Inc. Springfield, Illinois
Francisco Uviña, University of New Mexico
Hardscape Oasis in Litchfield Park
Ash Nochian, Ph.D. Landscape Architect
November 12th, 2025
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