Tourists visiting Walt Disney's childhood home may come looking for a small piece of the magic behind the 'happiest place on earth,' but what they'll find is anything but enchanting.
The historic home – located on Bellefontaine Avenue in Kansas City – looks like it's taken straight from the pages of one of the company's animations, with its perfectly charming front porch adorned with rocking chairs and bright green shrubs.
It's located on a quiet Missouri street next to similar styled homes that boast big front yards for children to play in.
The home's current owner, Roberta Young, conducts tours of the picture-perfect property, but the illusion of wonder surrounding the house is slowly slipping away as more and more homeless encampments creep into the neighborhood.
'Even when I came up, it was not this bad,' Young told Fox 4 Kansas City.
Discarded needles, trash, and stolen cars line the town's streets, and nearby alleyways are overflowing with garbage and debris.
Young said the disrepair of the area is impacting the area's reputation and giving tourists a negative experience.
'I have people that come here and when they see that, it gives this place a bad name,' she told the outlet.
Disney's home – located on Bellefontaine Avenue – looks like it's taken straight from the pages of one of the company's animations, but just around the corner is a nightmare
More and more homeless encampments are popping up in Kansas City, leaving trash and used needles behind. Kansas City pictured in 2024
Walt Disney moved to Kansas City when he was nine years old
The area is also preparing for an influx of visitors this summer as it will host four World Cup games in June.
Young said the city isn't prepared to make a good impression for the games with the garbage and the increasing homeless population.
Kansas City's streets are home to roughly 3,000 unhoused people, according to Fox 4 Kansas City. It has the largest percentage of homeless people per capita, KMBC reported in January.
The city has pledged $4million toward the problem, but officials can't force people to leave encampments and accept help, Chief Impact Officer with the Division of Unhoused Solutions, Josh Henges, told the outlet.
Young wants the city to put addicts in rehab to help them get clean and to quickly clean up the area, so it doesn't impact her house tours.
'What I actually want and hope and pray that they get to do is to clean up the alley,' she told Fox 4 Kansas City.
'At least 100 days in a rehab to clean these people up and maybe they can get their self [sic] together in order to get a job.'
The city has already begun clean-up efforts elsewhere, including the Blue River, where 50 volunteers helped the conservation initiative, KCTV 5 reported.
Roberta Young, who currently owns Disney's former home and offers tours, wants the city to clean up the area ahead of the World Cup games this summer
Roughly 3,000 homeless people live in Kansas City. The city pictured in 2024
'What I actually want and hope and pray that they get to do is to clean up the alley,' Young told Fox 4 Kansas City. The city pictured in 2024
Young said the homeless problem wasn't this bad when she was growing up. The city pictured in 2024
Volunteers removed invasive honeysuckle from along the riverbank and nearby trails to help protect wildlife and keep the greenspace healthy.
Disney and his family moved to Kansas City when he was nine years old.
The young boy was deeply immersed in his community, having taken drawing classes at the Kansas City Art Institute and attending Benton Elementary School, according to the Kansas City Public Library.
Disney would later return to the area after serving in the Red Cross during World War I. He worked as an artist for an advertising agency.
In 1920, he created an animated film with an old mentor, Ub Iwerks, which debuted in local theaters in the area.
In 1923, the businessman moved to Los Angeles to live with his brother.