A nearly $1 million renovation at former Jacksonville Jaguars star Myles Jack’s estate has spiraled into a legal collision over allegations of unpaid bills, shoddy workmanship — and deputies escorting the contractor off his property.
Jack, who played for several teams over an eight-year gridiron career, says he poured roughly $670,000 into the project at his St. Johns County home before he alleges he uncovered inflated costs and “significant defects” in the work.
“I was getting ripped off,” Jack said after hiring an engineer, a licensed contractor and construction attorney Edward Whelan to review the 13-month job. “Everything she touched needs to be redone.”
Contractor Amany Youssef, 28, of AY Luxury Designs, vehemently defended her craftsmanship and said that all her work passed inspection.
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She said she was blindsided when Jack booted her off his property and refused to pay his final $260,000 bill.
“I never had to worry about money with him before. He always paid on time,” she told The Citizen. “This has completely destroyed us.”
An Outdoor Oasis
Youssef, 28, landed the project in early 2024 to fix up the home’s pool area and install a new cage but the scope expanded.
The job included a cedar gazebo with a gas fireplace and hidden subwoofers, a 60-linear-foot outdoor kitchen and a pergola-covered hot tub, with a television that rises from a stone wall at the push of a button.
Youssef started construction on a 20,000-square-foot paver driveway that included a design of Jack’s initials “big enough to see from Google Earth,” Youssef said.
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She said the former UCLA Bruin star approved each addition to the job, pushing the final tally to over $900,000. She said she gave him freebies and a favorable rate because he was “such an easy-going guy” and had volunteered to be part of her company’s social media.
They filmed Instagram reels together in which he wears her company’s T-shirt. “You can tell him and I are very, very buddy‑buddy — we’re shaking hands and hugging,” she said of the clips.
Red Flags
But Jack, who is frequently in Texas where he’s the majority owner of a hockey team, began to grow frustrated by the duration of the project. He mentioned his disquiet to some contractors at a TPC Sawgrass event. “They gave me a look and were like, ‘Are you sure it should take this long?’” he recalled.
Soon after, Jack hired Whelan, and an engineer and a contractor to formally inspect the project.
“It was so obvious the work wasn’t done right,” Whelan said. “It would be like telling someone putting sod down to put the green side up,” Whelan alleged. “Our contractor recommended that the entire cage and outdoor kitchen be ripped out and redone.”
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Whelan alleges that AY Luxury Designs didn’t obtain necessary permits and didn’t comply with building codes for components of the project. The aluminum enclosure and outdoor kitchen, he said, weren’t properly secured to the ground.
Youssef disputes these allegations and says that she pulled all necessary permits.
The construction attorney added that the driveway has no curb so the pavers are shifting and chipping. Youssef countered that the pavers were installed properly, and there isn’t a curb because the entire driveway perimeter was reinforced with a concrete footer.
Jack calls the Police on AY Luxury Designs
Youssef didn’t realize anything was amiss until she and her crew were working on the property May 23, and a St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office lieutenant showed up, she said.
“’The homeowner wants you and every single one of your employees off his property right now,’” Youssef recalled the lieutenant saying.
Jack remained inside, observing the scene from a window, she said. She repeatedly knocked on his door, called and texted him — but he didn’t answer.
“There had been zero complaints and zero disputes about any of my prior work,” she said. “I felt like he had so much respect for me. I thought he was my biggest fan before this.”
Jack said he involved law enforcement because he wanted to avoid a confrontation. “I didn’t want it to blow up,” he told The Citizen. “I wanted to let the experts handle it. I have no ill will toward her.”
Lien and Limbo
AY Luxury Designs filed a $260,000 construction lien on Jack’s property on July 9. Whelan says he’s repeatedly asked Youssef’s attorney for a breakdown of the project’s costs, including materials, labor and the firm’s fee.
“I have literally received nothing other than copies of invoices,” he said. “We don’t know what they actually spent.”
Jack cautions other potential clients to be careful. “I’ve been blessed to play in the NFL and have this money. For someone who saved up for five to 10 years to afford a renovation, and it turns out for them how it turned out for me, it would be devastating.”
Youssef, who told The Citizen she’s a war refugee from Lebanon and a graduate of the University of Florida, says the cash-flow crisis has crippled the business she’s built from scratch.
“I’ve been working 18 hours a day to try to stay afloat,” she said. “I just want the money he owes me and to move on.”
If the parties don’t settle through negotiations, the dispute will play out in the courts.
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4 Responses
We went out to Mr. Jack’s home and did an inspection of the Screen Enclosure and the foundation and we found that there was no permit pulled for foundation footing and there are no footers in place which is against county code. The Screen Enclosure also had no permit pulled, and all of the members were not secured to code or engineering plans. The foundation is sinking into the ground and all of the paver work along with the fireplace and the outdoor kitchen are all failing. We also investigated the contractor and found that one license she was under was under investigation and currently suspended. From our knowledge this work was not completed to county standards and proper permits were not pulled. Noah. Johnson. Screen enclosures and more. LLC.
It feels incredibly opportunistic to make such claims against a competitor of yours when you stand to gain the job of ‘fixing’ you say is needed. You can look up his address in the county records and clearly see permits pulled for the job and where it received approval on all inspections. Someone like yourself knows exactly where to find this. It’s poor form for a contractor to make such claims publicly without all the facts or proof. Would hate for you to find yourself in this position one day and be on the receiving end of the comments and claims you’ve made here. You should know better.
Thanks Noah!
I am compelled to post some of my thoughts here but first would like to state that I have nothing to do with the above situation nor do I have any knowledge of what has occurred there. I am merely a past customer of AY Luxury Designs. That being said, I think that media (and the public) often instinctively sways towards the “consumer” and assumes a company/contractor is in the wrong. That may actually usually be the case but based on my past experiences with AY Luxury Designs, I would recommend waiting until all the facts are clear before passing judgment one way or another.
My wife and I have worked with this company on two projects at our home. The first one went so well we decided to expand the project in sort of a “Phase II”.
What were impressed with the company right from the start when we were given a 3D rendering of what our project would look like upon completion. Many “Paver” companies simply do not do this. We were also provided with a scope of work that clearly defined what was to be done, what products were to be used, what the contractors responsibilities were, what the home owners responsibilities were and when what portion of the total of the price was due and when. We also came to understand that this company requires that things be done right and to code and if any permits are necessary it is not negotiable, they must be pulled.
Both projects were started on time and completed within a reasonable time. Our front and back yard were transformed. Anyone (family, friends, unrelated service technicians or contractors, even FedEx and Amazon delivery staff) rave about how great our property looks when they see the paver work and LED lighting that was done. Three years since install and everything is in perfect condition and looks as good as the day it was installed. We have needed a few small things since install and all I have had to do is text the owner, Amany. I suppose I could just call the office but Amany is always available and very responsive. Just as a very small example: about six months ago one of our upward facing LED lights was looking a little dim compared to the others. I texted Amany and within a day one of her technicians came out. She had him not only replace the light that was dim, but install/replace a whole new power transformer that was probably not needed. She did all of this under warranty.
Our experience with Amany is that she is an ethical person who stands behind her work. She cares about her customers. Another small example I can relate is from last year when she heard my wife had a bad accident and was in the hospital for quite a while. Amany hand carried and delivered flowers to our house for her. This has little to do with the projects themselves but we have never had a contractor that cared about us after the project was paid for like that and I feel is worth mentioning.
Long story short, we would not hesitate to work with AY again in the future. Based on public reviews posted on line, there are other customers who seem to feel the same. I hope people don’t make assumptions about this company just based on one ongoing situation for which all the facts have not necessarily been reported/made clear.