SPOKANE, Washington — A state investment aimed at adding and retaining high-value manufacturing jobs complements a $30 million private investment for an expansion at Mercer Mass Timber in Spokane Valley, a move local leaders say will anchor the company’s future in the region and strengthen Washington state’s manufacturing industry. The $250,000 award, from the Governor’s Economic Development Strategic Reserve Fund, will be administered through Greater Spokane Incorporated. …Joey Gunning, director of economic development at GSI, says the funding will help Mercer install assembly line infrastructure at its 270,000-square-foot Spokane Valley facility. The state grant, he adds, is intended to ensure the manufacturer remains in Washington state as it evaluates future production options and to support job growth in a sector viewed as central to the region’s clean-manufacturing economy. “These funds from the governor’s office need to meet specific industry requirements,” Gunning says.