Living Walls & Moss Walls| New York City

lily scott is a Brooklyn-based design-build firm specializing in custom living plant walls and preserved moss wall installations for commercial interiors across New York City. We partner with architects, interior designers, general contractors, and MEP engineers on projects in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and across the five boroughs. From schematic design through installation and ongoing maintenance.

With 12 years of experience in biophilic design and hundreds of commercial installations across the Northeast, we are New York City's trusted specialist for both hydroponic living wall systems and preserved moss walls.

Two Systems. One Specialist.

New York City commercial interiors demand green wall solutions that perform under real conditions; tight timelines, complex MEP coordination, strict building codes, and high-visibility environments where aesthetics cannot be compromised. We offer both primary green wall systems, specified and installed to the demands of New York's commercial construction market.

Hydroponic Living Plant Walls

Our proprietary living wall system is a hydroponic felt-based growing system engineered for residential and commercial interiors. Live plants are cultivated in a multi-layer inert growing medium made from 100% recycled materials that will never decompose, fed by an automated irrigation and nutrient delivery system integrated with the building's infrastructure.

MEP Requirements for NYC Projects

Living wall installations in New York City require compliance with the most stringent building codes in North America. Our team works directly with your MEP engineers and GC from design development through construction documents.

Requirements include:

• Plumbing: Dedicated water supply line and drain or closed-loop reservoir. Drain location must be resolved in design development, retrofitting post-construction is costly in NYC's dense building stock.

• Electrical: Dedicated circuits for irrigation controllers, grow lighting, and system monitoring sensors. Coordinate with electrical engineer during CD phase.

• Lighting: Minimum 120–150 foot-candles of appropriate spectrum light required for plant health. Supplemental grow lighting must be integrated.

• Waterproofing: Waterproof membrane required behind all living wall assemblies. Non-negotiable in NYC's building code environment.

• Structural: Wall assembly must be reviewed by structural engineer of record for load capacity. At 8–12 lbs/sq ft, a 300 sq ft installation adds up to 3,600 lbs to the wall structure.

Living Wall Pricing

On average, our systems are $180–$230/SF, installed. Custom irrigation design, 100+ tropical plant varieties, custom shop drawings, installation, etc are all included.

NYC projects may carry a premium relative to other markets due to building access requirements, elevator logistics, union labor coordination, and permitting. We provide detailed project-specific quotes at no charge.

Ideal Applications in NYC

• Corporate offices: Lobby features, conference rooms, open-plan dividers, executive suites. Living walls measurably improve productivity (18%), reduce employee fatigue (30%), and absorb sound (40%) — metrics increasingly required for WELL certification in Class A office developments.

• Hospitality: Hotel lobbies, restaurant feature walls, rooftop bars, event spaces. Living walls create the high-impact visual anchor that drives social media engagement and guest dwell time.

• Healthcare & wellness: Spa environments, medical office lobbies, wellness centers. Biophilic design is clinically associated with reduced patient anxiety and improved recovery outcomes.

• Retail & mixed-use: Brand differentiation at point of entry, window features, interior focal walls. Living greenery signals premium positioning and increases foot traffic dwell time.

[Start Your NYC Project →]

Preserved Moss Walls

Our preserved moss walls are the no-maintenance green wall solution trusted by New York City interior designers and architects for retrofit projects, tenant improvements, and spaces where MEP integration is cost-prohibitive or logistically complex. Sourced from European forest floors and treated with a natural glycerin preservation process, our moss retains its color, texture, and dimensional quality for 10–12 years under normal interior conditions.

Why Preserved Moss Works for NYC Retrofits

New York City's commercial building stock, particularly Class B and Class C office, hospitality conversions, and landmarked buildings, often presents MEP constraints that make living wall installation impractical or prohibitively expensive. Preserved moss walls require no plumbing, no electrical, no structural review, and no waterproofing. They mount directly to finished drywall and can be installed without disrupting an occupied space.

For tenant improvement projects, lease renewals, and fast-track hospitality renovations, preserved moss is the specification-grade solution that delivers immediate biophilic impact without construction complexity.

Preserved Moss Wall Pricing

On average our preserved moss walls fall between $110-$140/SF with custom signage, logos, lighting elements, framing as an added cost.

No ongoing maintenance costs. Full panel replacement at 10–12 years.

Ideal Applications in NYC

• Corporate offices: Tenant improvement features, reception areas, conference room focal walls, breakout spaces

• Hospitality: Restaurant feature walls, hotel corridors, speakeasy-style bar environments, boutique retail

• Healthcare & wellness: Meditation rooms, spa treatment areas, therapy office environments

• Retail & mixed-use: Brand experience features, pop-up installations, showroom environments

Side-by-Side Comparison

Why NYC Architects & Designers Choose Lily Scott?

Brooklyn-based, NYC-fluent. We are not a national company parachuting into New York projects. We are based in Brooklyn, and we understand the realities of NYC commercial construction; building access logistics, union coordination, DOB compliance, and the compressed timelines that define this market.

Early-stage involvement. For living wall systems, we engage at schematic design or design development, not at the finish selection stage. This protects your MEP coordination, your budget, and your schedule.

WELL AP Certified. Our WELL AP certification means we can support projects pursuing WELL Building Standard certification, providing documentation, system performance data, and specification language your team needs.

OSHA 40 & SST Certified. All installation work meets New York City's safety training requirements. No compliance surprises on your job site.

Transparent pricing. We publish our pricing ranges because we believe architects and designers deserve to make informed specification decisions. Project-specific quotes are provided at no charge within 24 hours.

New York City Service Areas

We serve commercial projects throughout all five boroughs and the greater New York metropolitan area:

Manhattan: Midtown, Downtown, Tribeca, SoHo, Flatiron, Hudson Yards, Upper East Side, Upper West Side Brooklyn: DUMBO, Williamsburg, Downtown Brooklyn, Red Hook, Greenpoint, Park Slope Queens: Long Island City, Astoria, Flushing The Bronx: South Bronx, Fordham New Jersey: Hoboken, Jersey City, Newark Connecticut: Greenwich, Stamford, Westport

Frequently Asked Questions — NYC Green Walls

How long does a living wall installation take in NYC? Installation itself takes 1–3 days regardless of project scale. However, the full project timeline from contract to installation is 2–4 months, driven by custom fabrication, plant propagation, and MEP coordination. Preserved moss walls can be installed in 3–7 weeks from approval.

Do living walls require NYC DOB permits? Plumbing and electrical components of living wall systems may require permits depending on project scope. We work with your GC and MEP team to identify permit requirements during design development. Our team is experienced with NYC DOB compliance for green wall installations.

Can living walls be installed in landmarked NYC buildings? Yes, with proper coordination. Preserved moss walls are typically the simpler path in landmarked buildings due to the absence of MEP work. Living walls are possible but require careful planning around building envelope penetrations and structural considerations.

What is the fire rating for your living wall systems? Our systems are available with fire-rated components for NYC Building Department compliance. We provide Class A fire rating documentation upon request and have experience with both NYC and NYS building department requirements.

Do you serve residential projects in NYC? Our primary focus is commercial interiors, corporate offices, hospitality, healthcare, and retail. We evaluate residential projects on a case-by-case basis. Contact us to discuss your project.

How do I get started on a NYC green wall project? Contact us with your project details; space dimensions, timeline, and project type. We'll provide a no-charge consultation and preliminary quote within 48 hours.

Start Your New York City Green Wall Project

Whether you're specifying a living plant wall for a new Class A office development in Hudson Yards or a preserved moss feature wall for a Tribeca restaurant renovation, Lily Scott Designs is New York City's commercial green wall specialist.

Contact us: info@lilyscottdesigns.com (929) 925-4496 , Monday–Friday, 8am–6pm

Lily Scott Designs LLC | Brooklyn, New York | Serving NYC and the NortheastLiving Walls · Preserved Moss Walls · Biophilic Design · Commercial Interiors