Greenbelt's 1937 Roosevelt Center Mall was one of the first planned shopping areas in the country and a precursor to the modern shopping mall. The town's planners placed it within easy and safe walking distance of all Greenbelt homes, and pedestrian underpasses allowed residents to reach the center without crossing major streets. At first, Greenbelt residents cooperatively owned all of the center's commercial businesses, distributing profits to members, with startup funds loaned by Boston merchant and philanthropist Edward Filene. These cooperative businesses included a grocery store, gas station, drug store, barber shop, movie theater, valet shop, beauty parlor, variety store, and tobacco shop. The movie theater opened in September 1938 and was the first and perhaps only cooperative theater in the country, with residents deciding the films and ticket prices. In 1954 the U.S. government sold the center buildings to a private real estate firm, and in 1956 the cooperative stores left. The first stand-alone Co-op Grocery Store building, built in 1948, burned down and was rebuilt in 1962 on its current site near the Mother and Child statue. Surviving Greenbelt cooperative ventures include the Co-op Grocery Store, the Greenbelt Nursery School, and the Greenbelt News Review newspaper. The Roosevelt Center buildings reflect a modern streamlined style associated with International Style architecture that originated in Europe after World War I, seen in their rounded corners, flat roof lines, and Art Deco style theater sign. In 1982 the City named the mall after President Franklin D. Roosevelt in honor of both the 100th anniversary of his birth and his key role in founding Greenbelt.