Who is really holding the pen?

"Architecture is too important to be left to architects". This sentiment seems to highlight the importance of architectural impact on society. It also claims that the people who study and design buildings for a living should not do so in a vacuum. It seems easy to acknowledge that allowing the public to have input on the buildings around them is a good thing. The harder question to answer is how much. Architects act as a judge of safety and aesthetics in there everyday jobs. It is our job to ensure that the building at the end of the day is the best solution for the community. However, this is almost never exactly what the community wants. How much should we listen to the community? Should we just take what they say and set it to the side? Or should we even try to let them hold the pen while we design? I believe the answer lies somewhere in between. But I also think that trying to bend towards the community will every time will result in failure. Part of the architects job is to put things out into the world to be judged and challenged by the community. Sometimes these projects are the ones that the community holds most dear.