# There's a New King in Town

- Date: 2026-10-13
- From: Ground Level News
- Area: Bullhead City
- Canonical: https://groundlevelnews.com/press-releases/2026-10-13-theres-a-new-king-in-town/
- Source: https://www.riversideresort.com/don-laughlin-history-founder-riverside-resort-casino/
- Image: https://groundlevelnews.com/img/photos/bullhead-city.webp (File photo; Stan Shebs / Wikimedia Commons; CC BY-SA 3.0; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bullhead_City_Arizona_1.jpg)

> A Bullhead City local says that since Don Laughlin gave up the mantle, Dean Ziroli has stepped in to get the community going and keep everybody together, and is creating affordable housing through his company, Allegiant Homes.

**BULLHEAD CITY, Ariz.** — Developing local story.

"There's a new king in town," Bullhead City local James Jacobs told Ground Level News during a conversation in Bullhead City.

Jacobs said that since Don Laughlin gave up the mantle, Dean Ziroli is the one who has really moved in: getting the community going and keeping everybody together. Jacobs also said Ziroli is creating affordable housing through his company, Allegiant Homes.

As public background: a February 2025 release from Allegiant Homes described Ziroli as the company's founder, said Allegiant Homes was founded about five years earlier, and said it builds affordable homes in Bullhead City, including its Desert Canyon community, while hiring local Mohave County workers ([EIN Presswire](https://www.einpresswire.com/article/789705490/allegiant-homes-brings-quality-affordable-living-to-bullhead-city-az)).

For decades that title was Laughlin's. Don Laughlin opened the Riverside Resort on the Nevada bank of the Colorado River in 1966, and the river town of Laughlin, Nevada, directly across from Bullhead City, is named for him. He died of natural causes on October 22, 2023, at age 92, in his penthouse home at the Riverside Resort, according to the [Mohave Valley Daily News](https://www.mohavedailynews.com/news/riverside-resort-don-laughlin-died-of-natural-causes-surrounded-by-family/article_9e4d0658-71ef-11ee-a300-abdc8103eb1b.html) and the [Las Vegas Review-Journal](https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/don-laughlin-dies-casino-operator-namesake-of-nevada-town-dies-at-92-2926171/).

## What They're Saying

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> "There's a new king in town."
> — James Jacobs, Bullhead City local

**Do you know the story, or have your own take on who wears the crown?** Send us a tip. We will update this story as we confirm details.

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